ABSTRACT
Endoplasmic reticulum stress and autophagy are two two-edged swords. On the one hand, in case of intracellular environment disturbance, unfolded protein response reduces protein synthesis, promotes protein degradation, and increases protein folding to restore intracellular homeostasis through three signaling pathways, while excessive stress activates a series of signaling molecules to induce apoptosis; on the other hand, autophagy is a protective pathway for self-degradation in human body and can absorb and decompose damaged or harmful macromolecular substances in cells through autophagic vacuole-lysosome complex and promote cell metabolism, while excessive autophagy also causes apoptosis. Endoplasmic reticulum stress and autophagy play important roles in the process of hepatocyte apoptosis. Therefore, these two molecular mechanisms may serve as targets for future drug research and provide therapeutic and diagnostic strategies for hepatocellular diseases.