Autophagy-Related Genes (ATGs) Key Regulators of Abiotic and Biotic Stress Tolerance in Crop Plants

Abiotic and biotic stresses significantly affect plant growth, presenting substantial challenges to global agriculture and ecosystem stability. In response, plants have developed complex mechanisms of signal sensing and response pathways to adapt to adverse situations. Among them, autophagy is a highly conserved intracellular degradation and recycling process. Autophagy-related genes (ATGs) regulate this process, serving as primary regulators of autophagic activity within plant cells. To date, numerous studies have identified and characterized ATG genes, emphasizing their critical roles in important agronomic crops such as Oryza sativa, Triticum aestivum, Glycine max, Musa acuminata, Solanum lycopersicum, and Malus domestica , especially under various stress conditions. In recent years, additional ATG genes have been identified, and their functional roles have been elucidated through gene silencing and overexpression studies in agronomic crops, revealing their involvement in responses to diverse abiotic and biotic stresses. This review highlights recent advances that have shed light on the diverse regulatory mechanisms and context-dependent functions of crop plant ATGs in stress adaptation, providing valuable insights into their potential for developing climate-resilient crops.