Novel Markers in Diabetic Kidney Disease—Current State and Perspectives

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a leading cause of end-stage renal disease. Along with the increasing prevalence of diabetes, DKD is expected to affect a higher number of patients. Despite the major progress in the therapy of DKD and diabetes mellitus (DM), the classic clinical diagnostic tools in DKD remain insufficient, delaying proper diagnosis and therapeutic interventions. We put forward a thesis that there is a need for novel markers that will be early, specific, and non-invasively obtained. The ongoing investigations uncover new molecules that may potentially become new markers of DKD—among those are: soluble α-Klotho and proteases (ADAM10, ADAM17, cathepsin, dipeptidyl peptidase 4, caspase, thrombin, and circulating microRNAs). This review summarizes the current clinical state-of-the-art in the diagnosis of DKD and a selection of potential novel markers, based on up-to-date literature.