Norrin Treatment Prevents Vascular Permeability and Neural Cell Loss While Preserving Vision in Diabetic Rats.

González-González, Laura; Dreffs, Alyssa; Lin, Cheng-Mao; Liu, Xuwen; Hendry, Ethan; Antonetti, David A · Diabetes · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

We investigated whether norrin treatment can prevent or reverse diabetes-induced visual dysfunction in rats. Norrin treatment preserved visual acuity and contrast sensitivity, reduced neural cell death, inflammation, and vascular permeability, and restored inflammation-related gene expression patterns in diabetic retinas. Our results support targeting the norrin signaling pathway as a potential therapy for maintaining blood-brain barrier properties and preventing vision loss due to diabetes.