The complement system and diabetic retinopathy

Abstract

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the common microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus and is the main cause of visual impairment in diabetic patients. The pathogenesis of DR is still unclear. The complement system, as an important component of the innate immune system in addition to defending against the invasion of foreign microorganisms, is involved in the occurrence and development of DR through 3 widely recognized complement activation pathways, the complement regulatory system, and many other pathways. Molecules such as C3a, C5a, and membrane attacking complex, as important molecules of the complement system, are involved in the pathologenesus of DR, either through direct damaging effects or by activating cells (microglia, macroglia, etc.) in the retinal microenvironment to contribute to the pathological damage of DR indirectly. We review the integral association of the complement system and DR to further understand the pathogenesis of DR and possibly provide a new strategy for itstreatment.