The Effect of Atorvastatin and Continuous Aerobic Exercise on the Expression of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Beta Gene in the Liver Tissue of Diabetic Rats

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Background and Objectives Contrary to its weak role in angiogenesis, vascular endothelial growth factor beta (VEGF-β) plays a role in lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of exercise and atorvastatin on the expression of the VEGF-β gene in the liver tissue of diabetic rats. Subjects and Methods In this study, 25 rats were divided into control, diabetes, diabetes + exercise, diabetes + atorvastatin, and diabetes + atorvastatin + exercise groups. The interventions included eight weeks of aerobic exercise, running on a treadmill, and taking 10 mg of atorvastatin by gavage. After the interventions, the rats were sacrificed, and the liver tissue was analyzed. Statistical analysis was performed using one-way analysis of variance and LSD post hoc test. Results The results showed that the induction of diabetes led to a significant decrease in hepatic VEGF-β gene expression and an increase in serum glucose and total cholesterol levels compared to the healthy control group. In the diabetes + exercise and diabetes + atorvastatin + exercise groups, the increase of VEGF-β and the decrease of glucose and cholesterol were significant compared to the control, diabetes, and diabetes + atorvastatin groups. Conclusion According to the results, it can be argued that continuous aerobic exercise can prevent diabetes-induced liver complications by increasing the expression of VEGF-β gene. However, despite the positive effects of atorvastatin on serum glucose and total cholesterol levels, it does not have any significant effect on hepatic VEGF-β gene expression in diabetic rats.