Urinary pigment epithelium-derived factor as a marker of diabetic nephropathy in Egyptian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is the most common cause of end-stage renal disease. Urinary pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) has also been shown to suppress the expression of fibrogenic, pro-inflammatory, and angiogenic factors, thus contributing to pathological changes in early DN. We aimed to study the role of urinary PEDF as a biomarker for the detection of chronic kidney disease progression in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).