(A) Kidney-to-body weight (K/BW) ratio at 29 weeks post-diabetes induction in control and Pax8-RTN1A mice. (B) Total 24-hour urinary albumin excretion at 29 weeks post-diabetes induction. (C) Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels at 29 weeks post-diabetes induction. (D) Representative images of periodic acid-Schiff (PAS)-stained kidneys at 100x (top) and 400x magnifications (scale bars: 20μm, top panel, and 10μm, bottom panel). (E) Quantification of average tubular injury score, mesangial matrix fraction (%) and the glomerular area is shown per mouse (n=5 mice per group).*p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001, and ****p<0.0001 between indicated groups by two-way ANOVA with Tukey's post hoc analysis or nonparametric Mann-Whitney test (for tubular injury scores).