Densitometric analysis of the bands demonstrated increased ADAMTS-1 (Figure 9A), ADAMTS-5 (Figure 9B) and MMP-15 (Figure 9C) protein levels in the retina of rats after 4 weeks of streptozotocin-induced diabetes, whereas the expression of ADAMTS-2, ADAMTS-4 and ADAMTS-13 did not differ significantly between nondiabetic controls and diabetic rat retinas (data not shown). This evidence concerns the gene ADAMTS13 and diabetes mellitus.