Resumen
The aim of the present review is to discuss the autophagy, a well-known cellular process, able to remove damaged intracellular organelles as well as macromolecules and misfolded proteins. A dual role, as tumour promoter and tumour suppressor, has been attributed to autophagy. Therefore, we would analyse molecular mechanisms and regulatory pathways of autophagy, mainly concerning human astrocytic neoplasms. Moreover, information about relationships between autophagy, the tumour immune microenvironment, and glioma stem cells are furtherly illustrated. Drugs with higher selectivity for autophagy are actually developing and hopefully applied in the future to clinical practice. This modern perspective could help in the selection of patients with gliomas that are most likely to respond to the therapy of autophagy?inhibition.