MTOR and renal fibrosis: It is acknowledged that in a model of adenine-induced tubular injury in rats, where autophagy activation is accompanied by renal fibrosis, rhubarb acid can inhibit autophagy by modulating the AMPK-dependent mTOR signaling pathway and key molecules in ERK and p38 MAPKs signaling pathways, thereby reducing renal fibrosis (Tu et al., 2017).