Therapeutic potential of artesunate in retinal diseases: from mechanism to clinical applications

Abstract

Artesunate is a derivative of artemisinin, and due to its high solubility, and it has a broader application in clinical settings. Extensive research has confirmed that artemisinin-based drugs show significant activities in anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, anti-viral, and anti-angiogenesis aspects, suggesting that artesunate might have potential in treating retinal diseases. Currently, the etiology of most retinal diseases is not fully understood, and there is a lack of effective treatment methods. This paper summarized the research progress of artesunate in the treatment of retinal diseases, including retinoblastoma, choroidal melanoma, diabetic retinopathy, central retinal vein occlusion, proliferative retinopathy, and ocular neovascularization. In addition, the potential applications and future research directions of artesunate in the treatment of retinal diseases were also discussed.

Keywords: artesunate; choroidal melanoma; diabetic retinopathy; ocular neovascularization; proliferative vitreoretinopathy; retinal vein occlusion; retinoblastoma.

Figure 1. Progress in the therapeutic use of artesunate in fundus diseases

DR: Diabetic retinopathy; AMD: Age-related macular degeneration; PVR: Proliferative vitreoretinopathy; BRVO: Branch retinal vein occlusion; EMT: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition; VEGF: Vascular endothelial growth factor; VEGFR2: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2; PDGFR: Platelet-derived growth factor receptor; VEGFA: Vascular endothelial growth factor A; AMPK/SIRT1: AMP-activated protein kinase/silent information regulator of transcription 1; TGF-β: Transforming growth factor-β; VE-cadherin: Vascular endothelial-cadherin; EphA2: Ephrin type-A receptor 2; PI3K/Akt: Phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B.