Hyperglycaemia-induced expression of adhesion molecules and the modulation of junctional permeability is one of the initial events of endothelial dysfunction and was recently shown to be mediated by the PKC pathways.19,37 In this study, both hyperglycaemia and 3,4-DGE were found to increase endothelial ICAM-1 expression, but the expression of VCAM-1 was not affected. This evidence concerns the gene VCAM1 and endothelial dysfunction.