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Review
. 2025 Jun 6;14(12):856.
doi: 10.3390/cells14120856.

The Calcium Signalling Profile of the Inner Blood-Retinal Barrier in Diabetic Retinopathy

Francesco Moccia  1 , Silvia Dragoni  2
Affiliations
Review

The Calcium Signalling Profile of the Inner Blood-Retinal Barrier in Diabetic Retinopathy

Francesco Moccia et al. Cells. .

Abstract

Diabetic retinopathy is a sight-threatening complication of diabetes mellitus, affecting millions of people worldwide. From a vascular perspective, diabetic retinopathy compromises the structure and function of the blood-retinal barrier, leading to aberrant angiogenesis and vascular leakage, with consequent loss of vision. This review will delve into the vascular abnormalities caused by diabetic retinopathy in the inner blood-retinal barrier, focusing primarily on retinal endothelial cells. It will then discuss how calcium signalling regulates inner blood-retina barrier function and dysfunction, how calcium channels contribute to the development of diabetic retinopathy, and how studying the components of the calcium toolkit may identify new therapeutic targets.

Keywords: blood–retinal barrier; calcium signalling; diabetic retinopathy; endothelial dysfunction.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Vascular abnormalities in diabetic retinopathy. Retinae showing the progression of diabetic retinopathy and the vascular abnormalities associated with each phase of the disease. Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR), proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR), and intraretinal microvascular abnormality (IRMA). Created in BioRender. Dragoni, S. (2025) https://BioRender.com/kn96utz accessed on 14 April 2025.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The inner blood–retinal barrier in health and disease. A schematic representation of the cellular components of the inner blood–retinal barrier and how they change during endothelial dysfunction, leading to vascular permeability, transendothelial migration and cytokine release. Created in BioRender. Dragoni, S. (2025) https://BioRender.com/8l6qtn9 accessed on 17 April 2025.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The role of TRP channels in iBRB functions. In retinal ECs, TRPC1/4/5/6, TRPM7 and TRPV1/4 are involved in angiogenesis, whereas Ca2+ entry through TRPV4 induces vascular permeability. In VSMCs, TRPV2 regulates blood flow. Created in BioRender. Dragoni, S. (2025) https://BioRender.com/s9eg1dn, accessed on 18 April 2025.
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