GDF15 and Hyperglycemia: ROS plays a critical in hyperglycemia-induced vascular complications [22], and it is reported that GDF15 can protect cultured cerebellar granule neurons (CGN) against low potassium-induced cell apoptosis via attenuating ROS formation [53], thus we speculated that the protective role of adaptively induced GDF15 expression might be associated with ROS formation in high glucose-treated HUVEC cells.