Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) represents a major etiology of renal fibrosis, wherein hyperglycemic conditions enhance TGF-β1 activity and upregulate TGF-β1 mRNA expression, stimulating fibroblast proliferation and ECM deposition that accelerate renal interstitial fibrosis (RIF) progression (Zhao et al., 2020). The gene discussed is TGFB1; the disease is renal fibrosis.