Beneficial Impacts of Dietary Zinc Supplementation on Islet β-cells Regeneration and Glycemic Profile in Diabetic Rats (P24-015-19)

Abstract

Abstract Objectives This experimentally-controlled designed nutritional study, aimed to determine the effects of Zn-supplemented diet on glycemic profile, tolerance and control, body weight and pancreatic Islet β-cells in diabetic male rats. Methods Twenty four male Wistar rats each weighing ≥200 g were randomly categorized into three experimental groups (n = 8, each): Normal control (NC) fed with standard rat feed; Diabetic control (DC) fed with control diet and Diabetic (DZ) on test (zinc-supplemented) diet. Diabetes was inducted with freshly prepared alloxan monohydrate solution (150 mg/dL, intraperitoneally). Rats were fed for a period of eight weeks according to the experimental design with water ad libitum while their weights were measured twice weekly and recorded. Fasting blood sugar (FBS) levels were measured twice weekly while oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was conducted to construct the glycemic response curves. Animals were sacrificed at the end of eight week to extract pancreas for immunocytochemical and histomorphometric analyses. Microsoft Excel and statistical program SPSS version 22.0 were used to analyse data while P values <0.05 were considered significant. Results At the end of eight week study, Zn-supplemented diet caused significant (P < 0.05) reductions in mean body weight gain (28.5%) and FBS (31.5%) levels, stimulated islet β-cells regeneration and improved glycemic tolerance and profile in DZ rats compared with the diabetic control rats. Conclusions In conclusion, zinc-supplemented diet impacts beneficial antidiabetic effect in diabetic rats via stimulation of pancreatic islet β-cells regeneration, reduction of body weight gain and lowering of blood glucose level. Funding Sources This Study was self sponsored. Supporting Tables, Images and/or Graphs