Yang J, Zhang CZ, Zhang J. From metabolic regulation to kidney protection: β-arrestin 2 as a dual-function therapeutic target. World J Diabetes 2025; 16(3): 102014 [DOI: 10.4239/wjd.v16.i3.102014]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Jing Zhang, MD, Central Laboratory, The First College of Clinical Medical Science, China Three Gorges University & Yichang Central People’s Hospital, No. 183 Yiling Avenue, Yichang 443003, Hubei Province, China. zhangjing@ctgu.edu.cn
Research Domain of This Article
Urology & Nephrology
Article-Type of This Article
Letter to the Editor
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Diabetes. Mar 15, 2025; 16(3): 102014 Published online Mar 15, 2025. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v16.i3.102014
From metabolic regulation to kidney protection: β-arrestin 2 as a dual-function therapeutic target
Jian Yang, Cheng-Zhi Zhang, Jing Zhang
Jian Yang, Cheng-Zhi Zhang, Jing Zhang, Hubei Key Laboratory of Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease, Yichang 443000, Hubei Province, China
Jian Yang, Cheng-Zhi Zhang, Jing Zhang, Hubei Provincial Clinical Research Center for Ischemic Cardiovascular Disease, Yichang 443000, Hubei Province, China
Jian Yang, Cheng-Zhi Zhang, Department of Cardiology, The First College of Clinical Medical Science, China Three Gorges University & Yichang Central People's Hospital, Yichang 443000, Hubei Province, China
Cheng-Zhi Zhang, Jing Zhang, Central Laboratory, The First College of Clinical Medical Science, China Three Gorges University & Yichang Central People's Hospital, Yichang 443000, Hubei Province, China
Co-first authors: Jian Yang and Cheng-Zhi Zhang.
Author contributions: Zhang CZ and Yang J made equal and significant intellectual contributions to this work. Zhang CZ and Yang J designed the manuscript, they collaboratively designed the study, conducted data acquisition and analysis, and jointly wrote the original draft of the manuscript and as co-first authors. Zhang J and Yang J contributed to conceptualization, reviewing and editing. All authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 82471616, No. 82170418, and No. 82271618; Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province, No. 2022CFA015; Central Guiding Local Science and Technology Development Project, No. 2022BGE237; Key Research and Development Program of Hubei Province, No. 2022BCE001, and No. 2023BCB139; and Hubei Provincial Health Commission Project, No. WJ2023M151.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jing Zhang, MD, Central Laboratory, The First College of Clinical Medical Science, China Three Gorges University & Yichang Central People’s Hospital, No. 183 Yiling Avenue, Yichang 443003, Hubei Province, China. zhangjing@ctgu.edu.cn
Received: October 7, 2024 Revised: November 21, 2024 Accepted: January 2, 2025 Published online: March 15, 2025 Processing time: 107 Days and 23.6 Hours
Abstract
We are deeply interested in the recent findings on β-arrestin 2. Liu et al demonstrated that β-arrestin 2 knockout provides significant protection in diabetic nephropathy, underscoring its potential as a promising therapeutic target for diabetic nephropathy treatment. Furthermore, the role of β-arrestin 2 in metabolic regulation is equally critical, particularly in insulin signaling, hepatic glucose production, and adipose tissue function. Although β-arrestin 2 plays a distinct role in metabolism and kidney protection, its tissue-specific regulation opens up valuable avenues for developing targeted therapeutic strategies centered on β-arrestin 2.
Core Tip: This article highlights the dual-function potential of β-arrestin 2 as a therapeutic target for both diabetic nephropathy and metabolic regulation. Recent findings by Liu et al demonstrated that β-arrestin 2 exacerbates kidney damage in diabetic nephropathy by promoting glomerular endothelial cell apoptosis via the endoplasmic reticulum stress pathway. Conversely, β-arrestin 2 plays a significant role in regulating metabolic processes, such as hepatic glucose production, insulin secretion, and adipose tissue function. Its tissue-specific effects make β-arrestin 2 a promising target for therapeutic strategies, with ongoing advancements in biased ligands, small molecule modulators, and RNA aptamers.
