Purpose of review: To discuss recent advances indicating that bilirubin safeguards against cardiorenal and metabolic diseases.
Recent findings: Several investigations from human patient populations and experimental animal models have shown that bilirubin improves cardiorenal and metabolic dysfunction. The latest studies found an entirely new function of bilirubin suggesting that it acts as a hormone signaling molecule capable of activating nuclear receptors for burning fat, which may explain several of its protective actions. This review highlights the current findings (within the last 3 years) regarding cardiorenal and metabolic protective effects of bilirubin and the latest mechanism(s) that may be mediating these effects.
Keywords: Biliverdin reductase; Hypertension; Kidney; Metabolic syndrome; PPARalpha.