Isoquercetin Alleviates Diabetic Retinopathy Via Inhibiting p53‐Mediated Ferroptosis

). Protein expression was detected by immunofluorescence and western blot analysis, and mRNA levels were determined by real-time quantitative PCR. Our findings revealed that IQC mitigated retinal damage in diabetic mice, and in vitro studies further demonstrated that this effect was mediated by the inhibition of p53. In HG-induced HRCECs, we observed decreased cell viability, lipid peroxidation, and ferroptosis. IQC alleviated HG-induced ferroptosis in HRCECs by modulating the p53 pathway, which exhibited varying responses following p53 inhibition or activation. In summary, IQC downregulated the p53 signaling pathway, thereby reducing ferroptosis and apoptosis, and effectively ameliorated the damage associated with DR. These discoveries offer novel insights into the protective mechanisms of IQC in DR.