Western blotting showed that MCP-1 protein expression in the DM group was much higher than that in the control group (2.38 ± 0.53 vs 1.0 ± 0.31, P = 0.0021) and DMES group (2.38 ± 0.53 vs 1.40±0.31, P = 0.0163), while no significant difference in MCP-1 protein expression was observed between the control and DMES group (Figs. 7E and 7G; original band: Fig. S2). Here, CCL2 is linked to diabetes mellitus.