SHIPping out diabetes-Metformin, an old friend among new SHIP2 inhibitors.

SHIP2 (Src homology 2 domain-containing inositol 5'-phosphatase 2) belongs to the family of 5'-phosphatases. It regulates the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-mediated insulin signalling cascade by dephosphorylating the 5'-position of PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 to generate PtdIns(3,4)P2, suppressing the activity of the pathway. SHIP2 mouse models and genetic studies in human propose that increased expression or activity of SHIP2 contributes to the pathogenesis of the metabolic syndrome, hypertension and type 2 diabetes. This has raised great interest to identify SHIP2 inhibitors that could be used to design new treatments for metabolic diseases. This review summarizes the central mechanisms associated with the development of diabetic kidney disease, including the role of insulin resistance, and then moves on to describe the function of SHIP2 as a regulator of metabolism in mouse models. Finally, the identification of SHIP2 inhibitors and their effects on metabolic processes in vitro and in vivo are outlined. One of the newly identified SHIP2 inhibitors is metformin, the first-line medication prescribed to patients with type 2 diabetes, further boosting the attraction of SHIP2 as a treatment target to ameliorate metabolic disorders.