Autophagy is a highly conservative process of degeneration during which intracellular components including soluble macromolecules (e. g., nucleic acids, proteins, carbohydrates and lipids) and dysfunctional organelles (e. g., mitochondria, peroxisomes, and the endoplasmatic reticulum) are degraded by a lysosome. Autophagy serves as a dynamic system of recycling proving cells with energy and building components. Because of it in cells of an organism new proteins and membranes can form contributing to survival of the individual under starvation conditions. Autophagy plays an important role in the genesis and development of multifactorial pathogenesis including atherosclerosis and its risk factors. The present article examines both a pathogenic and protective role of autophagy in such pathological processes. The article can be useful to molecular biologists and biochemists, as well as to professionals involved in the problems of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases.