Nuclear BbAtg8 interacts with BbMac1 as a transcriptional modulator to sustain nuclear copper homeostasis during conidial germination.

Nuclear BbAtg8 interacts with BbMac1 to hyper-activate copper transporter genes, maintaining nuclear copper during conidial germination in Beauveria bassiana.

• Why it matters: Understanding how pathogenic fungi coordinate internal copper recycling with external copper uptake is crucial for revealing mechanisms of infection and survival under host-imposed copper starvation.
• What they did: The study used Beauveria bassiana to investigate the dual role of BbAtg8 in autophagy and nuclear transcriptional regulation, focusing on its interaction with BbMac1 and activation of copper transporter genes.
• The result: The findings show that the Atg8-Mac1 complex enhances copper transporter expression, especially at the nuclear envelope during copper deprivation, supporting nuclear copper homeostasis and fungal virulence.