Since defects in HSF-1 are responsible for intracellular ROS accumulation and increased apoptosis upon exposure to oxidative stressors, the unbalance of the HSF-1-ATG5/ATG12 axis has been suggested to be crucially involved in the impaired activation of autophagy and the oxidative stress-susceptibility of vitiligo cells [67]. This evidence concerns the gene ATG5 and vitiligo.