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Illuminating the regulatory link between blue light and autophagy in photomorphogenesis

Lu Jiang1,2,3, Hong-Quan Yang1,2, Wenxiu Wang1,2

  • 1Shanghai Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China.

Autophagy Reports
|November 19, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Blue light receptor CRY1 connects to autophagy to control plant development. CRY1 prevents HY5 degradation by autophagy in light, promoting photomorphogenesis, while blocking it in darkness to allow skotomorphogenesis.

Area of Science:

  • Plant biology
  • Molecular plant science
  • Cellular signaling

Background:

  • Cryptochrome 1 (CRY1) regulates photomorphogenesis by inhibiting COP1/SPA1-mediated HY5 degradation.
  • The role of autophagy in blue light signaling pathways remained largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the potential involvement of autophagy in blue light signaling in Arabidopsis thaliana.
  • To elucidate the functional connection between photoreceptors and autophagy in integrating light and nutrient cues.

Main Methods:

  • Yeast two-hybrid assays to detect protein-protein interactions.
  • Co-immunoprecipitation assays to confirm interactions in vivo.
  • Confocal microscopy to visualize protein localization and autophagy.
  • Analysis of plant phenotypes under different light and nutrient conditions.

Main Results:

  • Autophagy-related 8 (ATG8) targets Elongated hypocotyl 5 (HY5) for vacuolar degradation in darkness, promoting skotomorphogenesis.
  • Blue light activates CRY1, which binds to ATG8 and inhibits HY5 autophagic degradation.
  • CRY1-ATG8 interaction blocks ATG8-HY5 interaction, thereby promoting photomorphogenesis.

Conclusions:

  • A direct functional link between a photoreceptor (CRY1) and autophagy is established.
  • Autophagy acts as a crucial mediator integrating light and nutrient starvation signals.
  • This integration governs plant developmental transitions between photomorphogenesis and skotomorphogenesis.
Keywords:
ATG8AutophagyCRY1HY5photomorphogenesisskotomorphogenesis

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