TY - JOUR AB - Brain disorders, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease and cerebral stroke, are an important contributor to mortality and disability worldwide, where their pathogenesis is currently a topic of intense research. The mechanisms underlying the development of brain disorders are complex and vary widely, including aberrant protein aggregation, ischemic cell necrosis and neuronal dysfunction. Previous studies have found that the expression and function of growth differentiation factor‑15 (GDF15) is closely associated with the incidence of brain disorders. GDF15 is a member of the TGFβ superfamily, which is a dimer‑structured stress‑response protein. The expression of GDF15 is regulated by a number of proteins upstream, including p53, early growth response‑1, non‑coding RNAs and hormones. In particular, GDF15 has been reported to serve an important role in regulating angiogenesis, apoptosis, lipid metabolism and inflammation. For example, GDF15 can promote angiogenesis by promoting the proliferation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, apoptosis of prostate cancer cells and fat metabolism in fasted mice, and GDF15 can decrease the inflammatory response of lipopolysaccharide‑treated mice. The present article reviews the structure and biosynthesis of GDF15, in addition to the possible roles of GDF15 in Alzheimer's disease, cerebral stroke and Parkinson's disease. The purpose of the present review is to summarize the mechanism underlying the role of GDF15 in various brain disorders, which hopes to provide evidence and guide the prevention and treatment of these debilitating conditions. AD - Department of Physiology, Institute of Neuroscience Research, Hengyang Key Laboratory of Neurodegeneration and Cognitive Impairment, Hengyang Medical College, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, P.R. China Department of Medical Humanities, School of Medicine, Hunan Polytechnic of Environment and Biology, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, P.R. China Hunan Province Cooperative Innovation Centre for Molecular Target New Drug Study, Nursing School, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, P.R. China AU - Jiang,Wei-Wei AU - Zhang,Zi-Zhen AU - He,Ping-Ping AU - Jiang,Li-Ping AU - Chen,Jin-Zhi AU - Zhang,Xing-Ting AU - Hu,Mi AU - Zhang,Yang-Kai AU - Ouyang,Xin-Ping DA - 2021/11/01 DO - 10.3892/etm.2021.10705 IS - 5 JO - Exp Ther Med KW - growth differentiation factor‑15 brain disorders Alzheimer's disease cerebral stroke Parkinson's disease PY - 2021 SN - 1792-0981 1792-1015 SP - 1270 ST - Emerging roles of growth differentiation factor‑15 in brain disorders (Review) T2 - Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine TI - Emerging roles of growth differentiation factor‑15 in brain disorders (Review) UR - https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2021.10705 VL - 22 ER -