REVIEW article
Front. Mol. Biosci.
Sec. Molecular Diagnostics and Therapeutics
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmolb.2025.1648526
This article is part of the Research TopicInnovative Mechanisms of AKI, the Molecular Biology Mechanisms Underlying the Transition of AKI to AKD/CKD and New Diagnostic TechniquesView all 4 articles
The Potential Role of Non-coding RNAs in Acute Kidney Injury: A Focus on Natural Medicine Treatment
Provisionally accepted
- Department of Nephrology, The First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
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Abstract：Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a complex clinical disease characterized by sophisticated molecular pathways. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), including lncRNAs, miRNAs, and circRNAs, play a pivotal role. This review focuses on the role of ncRNAs in AKI pathogenesis and their potential as biomarkers for early detection and therapeutic intervention. We carried out an extensive examination of the expression patterns, functional roles, and molecular mechanisms of lncRNAs, miRNAs, and circRNAs in AKI, as well as their relevance to treatments with natural medicines. Our findings underscore the dualistic nature of ncRNAs in AKI, acting as both protective and detrimental factors that influence key biological processes includes inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. We also point out the possible importance of other ncRNA types, such as snoRNAs and snRNAs, in AKI pathophysiology. This review provides a holistic perspective on the role of ncRNAs in AKI and lays the theoretical groundwork for the creation of innovative therapeutic strategies and biomarkers.
Keywords: Acute Kidney Injury, non-coding RNA, Natural medicine, biomarkers, LncRNA - long noncoding RNA
Received: 17 Jun 2025; Accepted: 21 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 GUO, ZHAO, ZHANG, XING, FANG, ZHENG, Yang, Qiao and Yang. 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:
Yuxin GUO, Department of Nephrology, The First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
Bo Yang, Department of Nephrology, The First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
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