Renal Angiotensinogen Gene Expression and Tubular Atrophy in Diabetic Nephropathy

The growing incidence of diabetes mellitus, with predicted rises in prevalence from 285 to 380 million cases in 2025, then 438 million by 2030, is a major public health burden in both developing and developed countries. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes increase the risk of microvascular complications, which cause significant morbidity and mortality. Diabetic nephropathy (DN) and retinopathy represent the major causes of end-stage renal disease and blindness (1-2) in developed countries. DN is associated with an increased risk of hypertension, adverse cardiovascular events (3), chronic kidney diseases and haemodialysis (4). Efforts are therefore being made to find ways of preventing and/or slowing down the progression of DN worldwide.