ReviewAmerican journal of physiology. Cell physiology2021
The intersection of metformin and inflammation.
Review in American journal of physiology. Cell physiology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 82 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
82 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 123 citations in OpenAlex.
- Bibliometric analysis of metformin as an immunomodulator (2013-2024).Frontiers in immunology · 2024Pooled it
- MetAAA Trial Patients Receiving Metformin Therapy Show Limited Improvement in Quality of Life Compared to AAA Patients with Placebo Intake-A Double-Blind, Randomized, and Placebo-Controlled Trial.Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Trial
- Effect of metformin and lifestyle intervention on adipokines and hormones in breast cancer survivors: a pooled analysis from two randomized controlled trials.Breast cancer research and treatment · 2024Trial
- The Neuroimmune Duality of CD4⁺ T Cells: Drivers of Damage and Repair in the Brain.Molecular neurobiology · 2026Review
- A Biomimetic Microfluidic Triple-compartment Periodontium-on-chip for Investigation of Inflammatory Responses in Periodontitis.Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) · 2026Article
- Metformin as a Metabolic Reprogramming Interface in Host-Pathogen and Bone Microenvironment Crosstalk: A Dual-Target Strategy Against Antimicrobial Resistance and Osteoporotic Bone Loss.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Mitochondrial Homeostasis in Pancreatic β Cell Function: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Targets for Diabetes.Journal of diabetes · 2026Review
- Immunometabolism, an emerging field in perioperative and critical care medicine: a narrative review.British journal of anaesthesia · 2026Review
- The critical role of necroptosis in oil cyst formation associated with autologous fat transplantation.Cell communication and signaling : CCS · 2026Article
- Repurposing metformin: another possible bullet to target cheaply ulcerative colitis.Internal and emergency medicine · 2026Article
- Exploring the nexus between inflammation and mobility through the lens of healthy aging: current scenario and future perspectives.Aging clinical and experimental research · 2026Review
- Berberine: A Negentropic Modulator for Multi-System Coordination.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Therapeutical progress in sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2026Review
- Controversial effects of metformin on human physiology and pathophysiology.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Metformin-Associated Gastrointestinal Intolerance: A Narrative Review of Mechanisms and Clinical Management.Clinical medicine insights. Endocrinology and diabetes · 2026Review
- Metformin as a potential adjunct in the treatment of mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled pilot study.Internal and emergency medicine · 2025Article
- Oxymatrine Alleviates Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury By Targeting HDAC1 to Regulate Mitochondria-Related Autophagy and Oxidative Stress.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Article
- Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species: A Unifying Mechanism in Long COVID and Spike Protein-Associated Injury: A Narrative Review.Biomolecules · 2025Review
- Survival and Radiotherapy-Related Adverse Events in Patients Receiving Radiotherapy and Concurrent Metformin: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials and Cohort Studies.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
22 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
The biguanide metformin is the most commonly used antidiabetic drug. Recent studies show that metformin not only improves chronic inflammation by improving metabolic parameters but also has a direct anti-inflammatory effect. In light of these findings, it is essential to identify the inflammatory pathways targeted by metformin to develop a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms of action of this drug. Commonly accepted mechanisms of metformin action include AMPK activation and inhibition of mTOR pathways, which are evaluated in multiple diseases. Additionally, metformin's action on mitochondrial function and cellular homeostasis processes such as autophagy is of particular interest because of the importance of these mechanisms in maintaining cellular health. Both dysregulated mitochondria and failure of the autophagy pathways, the latter of which impair clearance of dysfunctional, damaged, or excess organelles, affect cellular health drastically and can trigger the onset of metabolic and age-related diseases. Immune cells are the fundamental cell types that govern the health of an organism. Thus, dysregulation of autophagy or mitochondrial function in immune cells has a remarkable effect on susceptibility to infections, response to vaccination, tumor onset, and the development of inflammatory and autoimmune conditions. In this study, we summarize the latest research on metformin's regulation of immune cell mitochondrial function and autophagy as evidence that new clinical trials on metformin with primary outcomes related to the immune system should be considered to treat immune-mediated diseases over the near term.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.