REVIEW article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Nutritional Immunology
This article is part of the Research TopicHealth Effects of Natural Compounds from PlantsView all 21 articles
Beneficial Effects of Food-Medicine Homologous Herbs for Patients with Diabetic Kidney Disease
Provisionally accepted
Qin Zeng1
Wenru Wang1
Yihan Li1Ming Wang2
Zhengtang Liu3Lei Yan1Jingyi Zhan1
Xinhui Wang1
Ying Liang1
Ren-Huan Yu1*- 1Department of Nephrology, Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
- 2Zhujiang Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- 3China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Xiyuan Hospital, Beijing, China
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Objectives: Global diabetes rates are rising sharply, driving a parallel increase in diabetic kidney disease (DKD) - a key diabetic complication. This trend poses mounting public health and economic burdens worldwide. Current therapies remain inadequate, making DKD progression a pressing unmet need. This review aims to assesse the efficacy and molecular mechanisms of food-medicine homologous herbs for DKD treatment. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted across multiple databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Embase) from inception to March 2025, using keywords including "diabetic kidney disease", and "traditional Chinese medicine". The search was meticulously designed to cover relevant research extensively. Data extraction focused on herb names, bioactive compounds, experimental models, therapeutic effects, and molecular targets. Findings: This review highlights 29 food-medicine homologous herbs with proven safety and efficacy in DKD. These herbs alleviate immune-inflammatory responses by modulating NF-κB, interleukins, TNF-α, chemokines, and adhesion molecules. They also reduce mitochondrial and non-mitochondrial ROS production, improving oxidative stress via Keap1/Nrf2/ARE, AMPK/SIRT, and NF-κB pathways. Renal fibrosis is suppressed through targeting fibrosis markers and regulating TGF-β/Smad and Notch signaling. Additionally, these herbs inhibit the AGEs/RAGE axis, correct gut dysbiosis, reduce apoptosis, activate autophagy, inhibit ferroptosis, and modulate microRNAs, collectively exerting renoprotective effects in DKD. Conclusions: Food-medicine homologous herbs demonstrate properties that align well with medical nutrition therapy principles, offering novel adjunctive therapeutic options for DKD.
Keywords: Medicine and food homology, food-medicine homologous herbs, Diabetic kidney disease, bioactive components, Dietary Supplements
Received: 03 Sep 2025; Accepted: 14 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zeng, Wang, Li, Wang, Liu, Yan, Zhan, Wang, Liang and Yu. 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: Ren-Huan Yu, tezhongeyu@vip.sina.com
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.