Moreover, serum inflammatory cytokines and immune mediators were found to be elevated in early-stage DN such as IL-1α (and not IL-1β) in addition to granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, IL-1Ra, IL-6, and MIP-1 and increase with CKD progression until stage 4–5, at which point a decrease was observed parallel to a loss of functional renal mass that occurs in late-stage CKD (32). Here, IL6 is linked to chronic kidney disease.