Diabetes type II is an autoimmune disorder of multiple etiologies that is basically due to deregulation of blood glucose homeostatis, thus causing hyperglycemia accompanied by various other disturbances of carbohydrates, fat and protein metabolism. Broad classification of these diabetic complications involves two major groups - microvascular which includes retinopathy (leading to blindness), nephropathy (leading to renal failure) and neuropathy (leading to nerve damage) and macrovascular, including cardiovascular complexity and peripheral vascular disease. Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a microangiopathy that induces optical complications in a diabetic subject that leads to acquired blindness in young adults due to high susceptibility of cellular components of retina towards the hyperglycemic environment. A large number of protein coding genes and some non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are reported to be involved, among which miRNAs are a small group of ncRNAs that are broadly studied to understand the pathology of the disease. Therefore, the functions and initiation of miRNAs could be regulated as their variation is allied with a broad array of functional defects, including incurable conditions. This review focuses on the molecular mechanisms of miRNA in response to DR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]