REVIEW article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Neuroendocrine Science
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1614006
Exploring the role of insulin resistance in bridging the metabolic syndrome and Alzheimer's disease-a review of mechanistic studies
Provisionally accepted
- 1Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun, Jilin Province, China
- 2College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changchun university of Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Changchun University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changchun, China
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The association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) has attracted wid espread attention; nevertheless, the precise mechanism of action between the two is not yet fully eluci dated. This review systematically explores the complex mechanisms of insulin resistance (IR) in Met S and AD. We first detail the intrinsic mechanisms of insulin resistance and emphasize its central rol e in the pathophysiology of MetS. Further, we reveal the underlying mechanisms by which insulin re sistance in turn triggers AD through a multidimensional pathway that promotes the accumulation of p athological products, ,induces blood-brain barrier dysfunction,impairs neuroplasticity, induces neuroi nflammatory responses, aberrantly activates the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, and exacerbat es oxidative stress. In addition, we summarize potential strategies for targeting IR in AD treatment an d demonstrate the promising prospects for improving insulin resistance in promoting cognitive recov ery. This study offers a novel theoretical framework for elucidating the intricate relationship between MetS and AD. Furthermore, it provides a scientific foundation for the formulation of preventive and t herapeutic strategies for metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases.
Keywords: metabolic syndrome, Insulin Resistance, cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease, Mechanism research
Received: 18 Apr 2025; Accepted: 23 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Shi, Xin, Kang, Xiong and Ren. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Jixiang Ren, renjx2003@163.com
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