Diabetic Retinopathy: Vascular and Inflammatory Disease

Table 1

Mechanisms influencing inflammatory responses in diabetes.

Factor	Function
Apoptotic cell death	Alteration of retinal structures and stimulation of the release of inflammatory mediators
Hyperglycemia	Upregulation of inflammatory molecule expression, promoting leukostasis, and increasing vascular permeability
Oxidative stress	Increasing inflammation and vascular permeability
Metabolism of fatty acids	Inducing inflammatory responses in the retina
AGE/RAGE interaction	Enhancing retinal inflammation
Hypertension	Increasing inflammation through the expression of retinal VEGF and ICAM-1