The relationship between blood pressure and sciatic nerve blood flow velocity in rats with insulin-treated experimental diabetes

Insulin-Stimulated Bone Blood Flow and Bone Biomechanical Properties Are Compromised in Obese, Type 2 Diabetic OLETF Rats

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) increases skeletal fragility and fracture risk; however, the underlying mechanisms remain to be identified. Impaired bone vascular function, in particular insulin‐stimulated vasodilation and blood flow is a potential, yet unexplored mechanism. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of T2D on femoral biomechanical properties, trabecular microarchitecture, and insulin‐stimulated bone vasodilation by comparison of hyperphagic Otsuka Long‐Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats with normoglycemic control OLETF rats. Four‐week old, male OLETF rats were randomized to two groups: type 2 diabetes (O‐T2D) or normoglycemic control (O‐CON). O‐T2D were allowed ad libitum access to a rodent chow diet and O‐CON underwent moderate caloric restriction (30% restriction relative to intake of O‐T2D) to maintain normal body weight (BW) and glycemia until 40 weeks of age. Hyperphagic O‐T2D rats had significantly greater BW, body fat, and blood glucose than O‐CON. Total cross‐sectional area (Tt.Ar), cortical area (Ct.Ar), Ct.Ar/Tt.Ar, and polar moment of inertia of the mid‐diaphyseal femur adjusted for BW were greater in O‐T2D rats versus O‐CON. Whole‐bone biomechanical properties of the femur assessed by torsional loading to failure did not differ between O‐T2D and O‐CON, but tissue‐level strength and stiffness adjusted for BW were reduced in O‐T2D relative to O‐CON. Micro–computed tomography (μCT) of the distal epiphysis showed that O‐T2D rats had reduced percent bone volume, trabecular number, and connectivity density, and greater trabecular spacing compared with O‐CON. Basal tibial blood flow assessed by microsphere infusion was similar in O‐T2D and O‐CON, but the blood flow response to insulin stimulation in both the proximal epiphysis and diaphyseal marrow was lesser in O‐T2D compared to O‐CON. In summary, impaired insulin‐stimulated bone blood flow is associated with deleterious changes in bone trabecular microarchitecture and cortical biomechanical properties in T2D, suggesting that vascular dysfunction might play a causal role in diabetic bone fragility. © 2017 The Authors. JBMR Plus Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

High Intensity Aerobic Exercise Training Improves Deficits of Cardiovascular Autonomic Function in a Rat Model of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus with Moderate Hyperglycemia

Indices of cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy (CAN) in experimental models of Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) are often contrary to clinical data. Here, we investigated whether a relatable insulin-treated model of T1DM would induce deficits in cardiovascular (CV) autonomic function more reflective of clinical results and if exercise training could prevent those deficits. Sixty-four rats were divided into four groups: sedentary control (C), sedentary T1DM (D), control exercise (CX), or T1DM exercise (DX). Diabetes was induced via multiple low-dose injections of streptozotocin and blood glucose was maintained at moderate hyperglycemia (9-17 mM) through insulin supplementation. Exercise training consisted of daily treadmill running for 10 weeks. Compared to C, D had blunted baroreflex sensitivity, increased vascular sympathetic tone, increased serum neuropeptide Y (NPY), and decreased intrinsic heart rate. In contrast, DX differed from D in all measures of CAN (except NPY), including heart rate variability. These findings demonstrate that this T1DM model elicits deficits and exercise-mediated improvements to CV autonomic function which are reflective of clinical T1DM.