Polyol pathway

The polyol pathway is a two-step process that converts glucose to fructose.[1] In this pathway glucose is reduced to sorbitol, which is subsequently oxidized to fructose. It is also called the sorbitol-aldose reductase pathway.

The pathway is implicated in diabetic complications, especially in microvascular damage to the retina,[2] kidney,[3] and nerves.[4]

Sorbitol cannot cross cell membranes, and, when it accumulates, it produces osmotic stresses on cells by drawing water into the insulin-independent tissues.[5]

  1. ^ Bonnefont-Rousselot D (September 2002). "Glucose and reactive oxygen species". Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care. 5 (5): 561–8. doi:10.1097/00075197-200209000-00016. PMID 12172481. S2CID 20485164.
  2. ^ Behl T, Kaur I, Kotwani A (2016). "Implication of oxidative stress in progression of diabetic retinopathy". Survey of Ophthalmology. 61 (2): 187–96. doi:10.1016/j.survophthal.2015.06.001. PMID 26074354.
  3. ^ Forbes JM, Coughlan MT, Cooper ME (June 2008). "Oxidative stress as a major culprit in kidney disease in diabetes". Diabetes. 57 (6): 1446–54. doi:10.2337/db08-0057. PMID 18511445.
  4. ^ Javed S, Petropoulos IN, Alam U, Malik RA (January 2015). "Treatment of painful diabetic neuropathy". Therapeutic Advances in Chronic Disease. 6 (1): 15–28. doi:10.1177/2040622314552071. PMC 4269610. PMID 25553239.
  5. ^ Jedziniak JA, Chylack LT, Cheng HM, Gillis MK, Kalustian AA, Tung WH (March 1981). "The sorbitol pathway in the human lens: aldose reductase and polyol dehydrogenase". Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 20 (3): 314–26. PMID 6782033.