Significance of glycated LDL in different stages of diabetic nephropathy

AimThe aim of this study was to investigate the role of elevated glycated LDL (low-density lipoprotein) in the progression of diabetic kidney disease among type 2 diabetes (T2D) subjects.Materials and methodsThis case-control observational study is a part of Saudi Diabetes Kidney Disease (SAUDI-DKD) study conducted during the period from April 2014 to June 2015. This study cohort is divided into two groups; the first group was T2D patients without diabetic nephropathy (DN) (n = 24) and the second group was T2D with DN (n = 45). Serum glycated LDL levels were determined by ELISA. Pearson's correlation analysis was performed, and the diagnostic accuracy was assessed using the area under the ROC curve.ResultsThere was a threefold increase of serum glycated LDL level among diabetic subjects when compared with non-diabetic subjects and this level progressively increased with the progression of DN. The glycated LDL was found to have a significant diagnostic accuracy with AUC of 0.685 and 0.775 for cases with microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria respectively.ConclusionThe glycated LDL could play a significant role in predicting diabetic patients who are susceptible to develop DN among T2D patients.