Study of the role of Interleukin-6 and highly sensitive C-reactive protein in diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetic patients

Background: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is becoming an increasingly common disease which is the leading cause of chronic renal failure. The pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy is still a matter of debate. There are conflicting results regarding the relation of C reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetes. Objectives: This study was aiming to determine the association between higly sensitive (Hs)-CRP and IL6 with nephropathy in a sample of type 1 diabetic Egyptian patients. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted on forty type-1 diabetic patients (Group l), who subdivided into three subgroups according to their urine albumin excretion rate (AER); Group IA: 10 patients with AER <20 mu g/min, Group IB: 15 patients with AER ranges from 20-200 mu g/min. Group IC: 15 patients with AER is >200 mu g/min and 10 healthy subjects as a control (Group II). Results: There were high statistical significant difference (p < 0.001) between group I with group II regarding HsCRP (4.39 +/- 1.94, 1.32 +/- 0.39), and IL-6 (2.82 +/- 0.76, 1.95 +/- 0.35). In group I, we found a positive significant correlation (p < 0.001) between UAE and levels of Hs-CRP (r = 0.927), and IL-6 (r = 0.838), respectively. Also, a positive significant correlation between Hs-CRP and IL-6 (r = 0.728, p < 0.001) was found. Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) level and HbA1c showed a significant positive correlation (p < 0.001) with Hs-CRP (r = 0.531) (r = 0.750), and IL-6 (r = 0.490) (r = 0.680) respectively. Conclusion: Hs-CRP and IL-6 are sensitive markers for diabetic nephropathy predicting its progression and severity in type 1 diabetics.