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Diabetes Animal Studies
Study findings on diabetes animal studies are outlined in reports from College of Medicine
November 7th, 2009
Investigators publish new data in the report 'Longitudinal studies of time-dependent changes in both bladder and erectile function after streptozotocin-induced diabetes in Fischer 344 male rats.' In this recent report, researchers in the United States conducted a study "To provide sensitive physiological endpoints for the onset and long-term progression of deficits induced by diabetes mellitus (DM) in bladder and erectile function in male rats, and to evaluate parallel changes in urogenital and nerve function induced by hyperglycaemia over a protracted period as a model for chronic deficits in patients with diabetes. The study comprised in 877 male, 3-month-old, Fischer 344 rats; 666 were injected intraperitoneally with 35 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ) and divided into insulin-treated and untreated diabetic groups." "The rats were studied over 8 months and measurements made of both erectile and bladder function, as well as nerve conduction studies over the duration of the study. There was an early (first month) abnormality of both erectile and bladder function that persisted through the 8 months of the study. The erectile dysfunction was manifest as reduced intracavernous pressure/blood pressure ratio, and the bladder dysfunction as a persistent increase in detrusor overactivity with no detrusor decompensation. Insulin treatment prevented or modified the abnormality in each organ. Hyperglycaemia caused a progressive decrease in caudal nerve conduction velocity. The mean digital sensory and tibial motor nerve conduction velocity did not deteriorate over time. Correlation measurements of nerve and organ function were not consistent. The results of this extensive long-term study show early and profound effects of hyperglycaemia on the smooth muscle of the penis and bladder, that were persistent and stable in surviving rats over the 8 months. The physiological changes did not correlate well with neurological measurements of those organs. Significantly, diverse smooth-muscle cellular and subcellular events antedated the measured neurological manifestations of the hyperglycaemia by several months," wrote A. Melman and colleagues, College of Medicine. The researchers concluded: "Although autonomic diabetic neuropathy is a primary life-threatening complication of long-term diabetes in humans, this rat model of STZ-induced diabetes showed that the rapid onset of physiological manifestations was based on many molecular changes in the smooth muscle cells in this model of type 1 DM." Melman and colleagues published their study in Bju International (Longitudinal studies of time-dependent changes in both bladder and erectile function after streptozotocin-induced diabetes in Fischer 344 male rats. Bju International, 2009;104(9):1292-300). For additional information, contact A. Melman, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York USA.. Publisher contact information for the journal Bju International is: Blackwell Publishing Inc., 350 Main St., Malden, MA 02148, USA. Keywords: United States, Bronx, Diabetes Animal Studies, Blood Pressure, Diabetes, Diabetes Mellitus, Endocrinology, Erectile Dysfunction, Impotence, Physiology. This article was prepared by NewsRx editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2009, NewsRx.com.
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