Corticosterone values and blood biochemistry in a model of streptozotocin-induced diabetes: the influence of dietary n6/n3 ratio

Sa？etak The study was carried out to investigate the influence of dietary n6/n3 ratio in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetes on serum biochemistry and corticosterone values in blood in 15 Wistar male rats assigned into three experimental groups, two diabetic and a control group (STZ-N3, STZ-N6, CON) fed with different diets (n6/n3 ratio: ≈ 1, n6/n3 ratio: ≈60, CON n6/n3 ratio: ≈7). Significantly higher values of alkaline phosphatase (AP) and beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) and lower levels for triglyceride and albumin were noticed in both STZ treated groups compared to the control. The values for blood urea nitrogen (BUN) were increased in only the STZ-N3 group compared to the control (P<0.05). The values for the total bilirubin (P<0.05) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (P<0.05) were higher in only the STZ-N6 group compared to the control. In addition,the STZ-N3 group had lower albumin values compared to the STZ-N6 group (P < 0.001). Corticosterone values did not significantly differ among all three experimental groups indicating similar levels of stress. In conclusion, the n6/n3 ratio significantly influences blood biochemical parameters in STZ-treated rats. Nevertheless, neither the n6/n3 ratio nor blood sampling and handling influences corticosterone values, which proved the validity of the STZ-induced rodent model of diabetes mellitus in the experimental conditions described