Caveolin-1 Level in Children and Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes

Abstract Background Diabetic nephropathy is a major vascular related complication of diabetes and the most common cause of end-stage renal disease. Caveolin-1 is a significant regulator of cellular adhesion and migration, playing a key role in signal transduction. Aim Assess caveolin level among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes and highlight the relation between caveolin level and urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER). Methodology A comparative cross-sectional study recruiting a total of 50 participants with type1 diabetes and 25 age and gender matched controls. Participants with type1 diabetes were equally divided into a normoalbuminuric and a microalbuminuric group according to (UAER). Caveolin level was measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay. Results Caveolin levels were higher in patients with diabetes compared to healthy controls (p < 0.01). Among patients with type 1 diabetes, caveolin levels were significantly higher in patients with diabetic nephropathy compared to patients without diabetic nephropathy (p < 0.001). ROC curve analysis showed that a cut off value of caveolin more than 6 ng/ml best differentiated patients with diabetic nephropathy from those without nephropathy with a specificity of 96%. Additionally, data from the current showed that caveolin levels positively correlated with (UAER) and HbA1c. Conclusion Caveolin levels are significantly associated with UAE in patients with type 1 diabetes. These findings may support the concept that elevated caveolin may be associated with diabetic angiopathy and could serve as a potential therapeutic target.