Figure 1.

Protease activity in diabetes. Protease activity was increased in (A) leukocytes and plasma of mice diabetic for 2 months. The increase (B) could not be attributed to a change in plasma hAAT level, but (C) could be inhibited in vitro by sivelestat (100 µM). The protease activity in WBCs and plasma was determined using the EnzCheck Elastase Assay Kit, and the amount of AAT in plasma was determined by ELISA. N, non-diabetic; D, diabetic. Data are expressed as mean ± SD. Graphs represent the combined results of 2 to 3 experiments; n = 4 to 6 per group; P < 0.05 is significant.