Clinical properties and non-clinical testing of mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists in in vitro cell models

Varda, Luka (author), Ekart, Robert (author), Lainščak, Mitja (author), Maver, Uroš (author), Bevc, Sebastjan (author)

Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) are one of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system inhibitors widely used in clinical practice. While spironolactone and eplerenone have a long-standing profile in clinical medicine, finerenone is a novel agent within the MRA class. It has a higher specificity for mineralocorticoid receptors, eliciting less pronounced adverse effects. Although approved for clinical use in patients with chronic kidney disease and heart failure, intensive non-clinical research aims to further elucidate its mechanism of action, including dose-related selectivity. Within the field, animal models remain the gold standard for non-clinical testing of drug pharmacological and toxicological properties. Their role, however, has been challenged by recent advances in in vitro models, mainly through sophisticated analytical tools and developments in data analysis. Currently, in vitro models are gaining momentum as possible platforms for advanced pharmacological and pathophysiological studies. This article focuses on past, current, and possibly future in vitro cell models research with clinically relevant MRAs.

• Language: English
• Keywords: finerenone, mineralocorticoids, spironolactone, eplerenone, in vitro techniques, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.02 - Review Article
• Organization: MF - Faculty of Medicine
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2024
• Number of pages: 21 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 25, iss. 16, art. 9088
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-169397
• UDC: 616.6
• ISSN on article: 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms25169088
• COBISS.SI-ID: 205135619
• Publication date in RUL: 27.05.2025

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: International journal of molecular sciences
• Shortened title: Int. j. mol. sci.
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 1422-0067
• COBISS.SI-ID: 2779162

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.