Blood glucose concentration in caviomorph rodents

Hystricomorph rodents are a group of species that belong to the suborder Hystricognathi. They mainly inhabit South American (caviomorph) and African (phiomorph) habitats. This group of rodents has a divergent insulin structure. For example, insulin in this group of rodents exhibits only 1–10% of bio...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Comparative biochemistry and physiology. Part A, Molecular & integrative physiology Molecular & integrative physiology, 2004, Vol.137 (1), p.57-64
Main Authors: Opazo, Juan C., Soto-Gamboa, Mauricio, Bozinovic, Francisco
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Blood Glucose - analysis
Blood glucose concentration
Caviomorph
Diabetes
Fasting - blood
Female
Glucose Tolerance Test
Glycemia
Hystricomorph
Insulin
Male
Oral glucose tolerance test
Pancreatic hormones
Rodentia - blood
Rodentia - classification
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Summary:Hystricomorph rodents are a group of species that belong to the suborder Hystricognathi. They mainly inhabit South American (caviomorph) and African (phiomorph) habitats. This group of rodents has a divergent insulin structure. For example, insulin in this group of rodents exhibits only 1–10% of biological activity in comparison to other mammals. Therefore, hystricomorph rodents may hypothetically be unable to regulate blood glucose concentration as non-hystricomorph mammals. In this work we evaluated blood glucose concentration in nine species of caviomorph rodents, with emphasis on species belonging to the families Abrocomidae, Ctenomyidae and Octodontidae. Specifically we: (1) measured glucose concentrations after a fasting period; and (2) conducted a glucose tolerance test. In the latter assay we used Octodon degus as a representative species of the genus Octodon. Results showed that blood glucose concentration values after fasting, and in the glucose tolerance test, were within the expected range for mammals. We postulate that this group of rodents has compensatory traits that may permit the maintenance of standard values of plasma glucose.
ISSN:1095-6433
1531-4332
DOI:10.1016/j.cbpb.2003.09.007