Growth Factors and Diabetic Nephropathy

Although the pathogenetic mechanism of diabetic nephropathy has not been elucidated,some growth factors have been suggested to contribute to its progression.Growth factors,such as VEGF,TGF-beta,IGF,PDGF,CTGF,EGF,FGF and NGF,play important roles in glomerular/tubular hypertrophy,glomerular basement membrane thicking,extracellular matrix expansion and glomerulosclerosis.