Insulin action on glucose uptake by soleus muscles of nonobese diabetic mice and streptozotocin diabetic mice

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

To elucidate the insulin action in skeletal muscles in insulin-dependent diabetes, the glucose uptake by isolated soleus muscles was studied in streptozotocin (STZ)-diabetic mice and nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice that develop insulinopenic diabetes spontaneously. The maximally insulin-stimulated uptake of 2-deoxyglucose was significantly decreased in spontaneously diabetic NOD mice with 3 to 6 weeks duration of diabetes (10.18 ± 0.58 v 12.80 ± 0.44 nmol/muscle/20 min, P < .005), while basal 2-deoxyglucose uptake was not significantly altered in them. The net insulin-stimulated uptake measured individually was also significantly reduced in spontaneously diabetic NOD mice (1.33 ± 0.23 v 4.07 ± 0.40 nmol/muscle/20 min, P < .001). This was the case with STZ-diabetic ICR mice with 6 weeks duration of diabetes and STZ-diabetic NOD mice with 2 weeks and 6 weeks durations of diabetes as well. The submaximal effect of insulin on 2-deoxyglucose uptake by the soleus muscle, defined as the percent of the maximal effect achieved at 10 ng/mL of insulin, was not significantly altered in STZ-diabetic NOD mice. These data suggest that a prolonged insulinopenic state might reduce the insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscles by diminishing the insulin responsiveness and cause the insulin resistance in diabetic animals.