Renal and Vascular Inflammation

Diabetic nephropathy is a devastating chronic complication in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Diabetic conditions impair several compensatory mechanisms protecting the renal cells from oxidative and cellular stress, including the antioxidant defense system and autophagy. In this offer, we propose to study the molecular basis of events by which autophagy is fine-tuned by oxidation/reduction events in diabetic kidney disease. We aim to analyze markers of redox balance and autophagy in renal samples from patients and animal models of diabetes, and also in cultured cells under hyperglycemic conditions. In particular, we will study the relationship between autophagy and transcription factor Nrf2, the critical cellular defense mechanism with cytoprotective, detoxification and anti-inflammatory functions. The proposal combines in vivo and in vitro studies to identify novel therapeutic approaches in diabetes.