MicroRNAs and diabetic complications

Abstract

Both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes can lead to debilitating microvascular complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy, as well as macrovascular complications such as cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis and hypertension. Diabetic complications have been attributed to several contributing factors such as hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, advanced glycation end products, growth factors, and inflammatory cytokines/chemokines. However, current therapies are not fully efficacious and hence there is an imperative need for a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying diabetic complications in order to identify newer therapeutic targets. microRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs that repress target gene expression via post-transcriptional mechanisms. Emerging evidence shows that they have diverse cellular and biological functions and play key roles in several diseases. In this review, we explore the role of miRNAs in the pathology of diabetic complications and also discuss the potential use of miRNAs as novel diagnostic and therapeutic targets for diabetic complications.