Effect of exercise on the morphology and function of pancreatic beta-cell in type 2 diabetes rats model

Objective To study the effect of swim on morphology and secretion of beta-cells. Methods Type 2 diabetes rats model was created by intraperitoneal injection of a small dose of streptozotocin plus high caloric laboratory chow with 14 animals. Then the rats were divided into a model group and an exercise group, with each group with 7 rats. After trained for swimming for 8 weeks, the pancreatic tissues of the exercise group were stained by immunohistochemistry technique, the islet cell morphology and cell quantity were measured. Moreover, insulin release function, plasma glucose and lipid were tested. Results (1)Compared with the model group, islet cell morphology improved significantly in the exercise group,insulin-expression positive cell density was improving and insulin relative volume was cut down near to the level of control group (P0.01), but insulin relative concentration did not change. Moreover, the function of insulin releasing and insulin sensitivity index were improving as well as △Weight, fat/weight, plasma glucose, lipid decreased significantly. Conclusion By meliorating insulin resistance, exercise can reverse the change of morphology on pancreatic islet in type 2 diabetes rats, maintain or increase effective beta-cell number, and improve secretive function of beta-cell.