In vitro and in vivo models of diabetic retinopathy have shown that simultaneous presence of both hyperlipidemia and hyperglycemia accelerates and exacerbates capillary cell apoptosis and the development of diabetic retinopathy; results from isolated retinal endothelial cells have documented that addition of lipotoxicity in a glucotoxic environment accelerates and exacerbates Nox2-ROS production, accelerating mitochondrial damage. Here, CYBB is linked to diabetic retinopathy.