BACKGROUND: Diabetic retinopathy is associated with accumulation of advanced glycation end products in the retinal microvasculature. LR-90 is an effective multistage inhibitor of advanced glycation with renoprotective and anti-inflammatory properties. AIM: To explore the role of LR-90 in the progression of experimental diabetic retinopathy. METHODS: Streptozotocin-induced diabetic Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with LR-90 (50 mg/l in drinking water) for up to 32 weeks. At the end of the study, eyes were enucleated and subjected to trypsin digestion and staining with light green/haematoxylin. Acellular capillaries and pericytes were quantified in random fields using light microscopy. RESULTS: In the LR-90-treated diabetic animals, acellular capillary numbers were reduced to 1.63 (0.20) from 2.58 (0.49) (p<0.05) in diabetic controls. LR-90 treatment also restored the pericyte deficit from 18.12 (0.98) in diabetic rats to 24.19 (0.76) (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: These findings show that LR-90 can effectively inhibit important lesions of diabetic retinopathy. This agent has potential for preventing retinopathy in patients with diabetes.