Urinary excretion of O-hydroxylysylglycosides in diabetes mellitus

In order to study the metabolism of collagenous proteins in diabetes mellitus, urinary excretion of O-hydroxylysylglycosides, a characteristic component of collagenous protein, was determined in diabetics and controls. There was no significant correlation between urinary excretion rate of O-hydroxylysylglycosides and age (r = -0.40 for diabetics and r = -0.15 for control). In 16 age-matched pairs, urinary excretion of O-hydroxylysylglycosides was less in diabetics than in control (0.78 +/- 0.18 (mean +/- S.D.) mu moles/m2 body surface x hr versus 0.92 +/- 0.18 mu moles/m2 body surface x hr, p less than 0.05). This results suggests that catabolism of collagenous protein decreases in diabetics.