The urinary enzymes alanine amino-peptidase, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyltransferase and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and the two urine low-molecular mass proteins lysozyme and ribonuclease were measured in 30 healthy men and 36 insulin-dependent diabetics. 17 diabetics had "clinical proteinuria" (greater than 7.5 g/mol creatinine) and were defined as patients with manifest diabetic nephropathy. The remaining 19 diabetics were without proteinuria. The excretion rates of the two urine proteins and all enzymes except for gamma-glutamyltransferase were the highest in patients suffering from diabetic nephropathy. The excretion rates in both diabetic groups exceeded those of the control group. N-Acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase was more often increased than albumin in diabetics without manifest diabetic nephropathy. It is concluded that the tubular dysfunction is an early indicator of the incipient diabetic nephropathy. Thus, tubular parameters, especially the lysosomal enzyme N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase may be used in follow-up studies of diabetics.