Diabetes Metab J.  2015 Oct;39(5):424-433. 10.4093/dmj.2015.39.5.424.

The Preventive Effects of 8 Weeks of Resistance Training on Glucose Tolerance and Muscle Fiber Type Composition in Zucker Rats

• Kim JY
• Choi MJ
• So B
• Kim HJ
• Seong JK
• Song W

• KMID: 2174016
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4093/dmj.2015.39.5.424

Abstract

BACKGROUND
We investigated the therapeutic effects of resistance training on Zucker rats before and after the onset of diabetes to understand the importance of the timing of exercise intervention. We assessed whether 8 weeks of resistance training ameliorated impaired glucose tolerance and altered muscle fiber type composition in Zucker rats.
METHODS
Five-week-old male Zucker rats were divided into Zucker lean control (ZLC-Con), non-exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Con), and exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Ex) groups. The ZDF-Ex rats climbed a ladder three times a week for 8 weeks. Intraperitoneal glucose tolerance tests (IPGTT) were performed on the 1st and 8th weeks of training, and grip strength was measured during the last week. We also measured glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) expression by Western blot and immunofluorescence. Moreover, immunohistochemistry was performed to assess muscle fiber type composition.
RESULTS
Fasting glucose levels and area under the curve responses to IPGTTs gradually increased as diabetes progressed in the ZDF-Con rats but decreased in the ZDF-Ex rats. Grip strength decreased in the ZDF-Con rats. However, resistance training did not improve grip strength in the ZDF-Ex rats. GLUT4 expression in the ZLC-Con and the ZDF-Con rats did not differ, but it increased in the ZDF-Ex rats. The proportions of myosin heavy chain I and II were lower and higher, respectively, in the ZDF-Con rats compared to the ZLC-Con rats. Muscle fiber type composition did not change in the ZDF-Ex rats.
CONCLUSION
Our results suggest that regular resistance training initiated at the onset of diabetes can improve glucose tolerance and GLUT4 expression without changing muscle morphology in Zucker rats.

Keyword

Diabetes mellitus, type 2; Glucose tolerance; Muscle fiber type; Rats, Zucker; Resistance training

MeSH Terms

Animals
Blotting, Western
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
Fasting
Fluorescent Antibody Technique
Glucose Tolerance Test
Glucose Transport Proteins, Facilitative
Glucose*
Hand Strength
Humans
Immunohistochemistry
Male
Myosin Heavy Chains
Rats
Rats, Zucker*
Resistance Training*
Glucose
Glucose Transport Proteins, Facilitative
Myosin Heavy Chains

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 Fasting blood glucose levels (A) and blood glucose area under the curve (AUC) responses to intraperitoneal glucose tolerance tests (B) during the first and last weeks of exercise training; Zucker lean control (ZLC-Con), non-exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Con), and exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Ex). Values are presented as mean±standard error of mean.

• 

  Fig. 2 Changes in blood glucose levels during the (A) first and (B) last weeks of exercise training in the Zucker lean control (ZLC-Con), non-exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Con), and exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Ex) rats at 0 (baseline), 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes after glucose administration (2 g/kg). Values are presented as mean±standard error of mean. aP<0.05 vs. ZLC-Con, bP<0.001 vs. ZLC-Con, cP<0.05 vs. ZDF-Con, dP<0.001 vs. ZDF-Con.

• 

  Fig. 3 (A) Glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) protein levels assessed by Western blot and immunofluorescence assay in the skeletal muscle of the (B) Zucker lean control (ZLC-Con), (C) non-exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Con), and (D) exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Ex) rats. Paraffin sections were incubated with GLUT4 antibody (1:1,000) and then with a fluorescein isothiocyanate-conjugated secondary antibody (1:50). Values are presented as mean±standard error of mean (immunofluorescence assay, ×400; scale bar=50 µm).

• 

  Fig. 4 Immunohistochemistry was performed on the medial gastrocnemius muscle from the (A) Zucker lean control (ZLC-Con), (B) non-exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Con), and (C) exercised Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF-Ex) rats. Paraffin sections of the muscle were immunostained with fast myosin heavy chain (MHC II) antibody (1:2,000 dilution). MHC I fibers were calculated from the unstained areas, and MHC II fibers were calculated from the stained areas, which appear dark (×100, scale bar=50 µm). The percentage of (D) MHC I-positive and (E) MHC II-positive areas were calculated using Innerview 2.0 software (Lumenera). Values are presented as mean±standard error of mean.

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