Increasing amount of data based on animal studies support the pathogenic role of tissue hypoxia in the development and progression of diabetic nephropathy. Blood Oxygenation-Level Dependent Magnetic Resonance Imaging (BOLD-MRI) is increasingly used in research to measure cortical and medullary oxygenation in a non-invasive manner. Interestingly, in two cross-sectional clinical studies, we have recently found a positive correlation between high circulating blood glucose levels and cortical R2* levels in type 2 DM patients. This discovery suggests that an increase in glycemia might acutely decrease renal tissue oxygenation.