The marked reduction of albuminuria, renal lesions and inflammation-related pathways in a type 2 diabetic mice model by the therapeutic pharmacological inhibition of the VEGFR2 pathway, using a VEGFR2 kinase inhibitor, suggests that this GREMLIN/VEGFR2 pathway could be a feasible therapeutic target for DN. Here, GREM1 is linked to type 2 diabetes mellitus.