Gender differences in end-organ damage caused by experimental Diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most important worldwide health problems. This disorder is commonly associated with chronic complications involving end-organ damage and cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension, nephropathy, cardiomyopathy, atherosclerosis and neuropathy. In diabetic people, the absolute rate of cardiovascular diseases increases with age and is higher in men than in women. However, at present there is no common consent concerning the gender differences on the risks for cardiovascular diseases between diabetic patients. The mechanisms responsible for this sexual dimorphism in diabetic pathology represent a subject of actual investigation. Our and others studies indicate that the renin-angiotensin system is contributing to the sexual dimorphism in the pathogenesis of target organ damage in cardiovascular diseases. Our working hypothesis is that gender-dependent target-organ damage occurs in diabetes mellitus with the involvement of tissue renin-angiotensin systems, independently of arterial pressure. In the proposed project, we aim at pursuing a systematic investigation on the sexual dimorphism of diabetes-induced end-organ damage and the roles of renin-angiotensin system and androgens. (AU)