We show that the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) — the outermost layer of the retina — is a local source of insulin that is modulated by starvation and phagocytosis, separate from pancreatic insulin. Further, this RPE-derived insulin has functional relevance in retinal physiology, retinal metabolic homeostasis and in limiting retinal disease.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$29.99 per month
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles
$99.00 per year
only $8.25 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Get just this article for as long as you need it
$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Léveillard, T., Philp, N. J. & Sennlaub, F. Is retinal metabolic dysfunction at the center of the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration? Int. J. Mol. Sci. 20, 762 (2019). A review of metabolic dysfunction in retinal degeneration.
Hui, S. et al. Glucose feeds the TCA cycle via circulating lactate. Nature 551, 115–118 (2017). This paper reports that the brain is the only tissue that can take up glucose from circulation in fasting mice.
Penberthy, K. K. et al. Context-dependent compensation among phosphatidylserine-recognition receptors. Sci. Rep. 7, 14623 (2017). This paper contains the RNA-seq data set from which our original observations on insulin in the eye began.
Reiter, C. E. N. et al. Characterization of insulin signaling in rat retina in vivo and ex vivo. Am. J. Physiol. Endocrinol. Metab. 285, E763–E774 (2003). This paper shows that insulin injected into the portal vein of rats does not affect insulin signalling in the retina.
Mazucanti, C. H. et al. Release of insulin produced by the choroid plexis is regulated by serotonergic signalling. JCI Insight 4, e131682 (2019). This paper shows that the choroid plexus epithelium of the brain can produce insulin.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
This is a summary of: Etchegaray, J. I. et al. Phagocytosis in the retina promotes local insulin production in the eye. Nat. Metab. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-022-00728-0 (2023).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
A local source of insulin protects the retina against starvation. Nat Metab 5, 205–206 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-023-00745-7
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-023-00745-7
