Autophagy plays an important role in the process of plant development and interaction with pathogens such as fungi, bacteria, and plant viruses. Autophagy is linked to immunity and disease resistance through inhibition of programmed cell death (PCD) and is recognized as an important defense component in plants. Autophagy also helps selectively eliminate pathogens through specific interactions. A number of pathogens have acquired the ability to cope with or evade autophagy and use it to develop the disease. Some other pathogens also use the autophagy system as pathogenic factors. Therefore, understanding cellular processes such as responses related to autophagy genes are very important for studying pathological physiology and plant immunity. The role of autophagy in the immune system and the plant's defense response to pathogens is described in this article.