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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2014 Dec 4.
Published in final edited form as: Lancet Neurol. 2012 May 16;11(6):521–534. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(12)70065-0

Figure 3. Mechanisms of diabetic neuropathy.

Figure 3

Factors linked to type 1 diabetes (yellow), type 2 diabetes (blue) and both (green) cause DNA damage, ER stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, apoptosis and loss of neurotrophic signaling. This cell damage can occur in neurons, glial cells and vascular endothelial cells, as well as triggering macrophage activation, all of which can lead to nerve dysfunction and neuropathy. The relative importance of the pathways in this network will vary with cell type, disease profile and time. Abbreviations: AGE, advanced glycation end-products; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; HDL, high-density lipoprotein; FFA, free fatty acids; ROS, reactive oxygen species (red star); ER, endoplasmic reticulum; PI3K, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase.