Characteristics of insulin-induced hyperphagia in the golden hamster

Two experiments were performed to investigate in some detail the behavioural and metabolic effects of the administration of regular insulin to golden hamsters. In Experiment 1 dose-response curves describing the effects of insulin upon both food intake and plasma glucose (PG) were generated. Dosages of less than 20 units/kg did not cause increases in food intake, while dosages of 10 units/kg or greater produced significant hypoglycemia at +6 hr post-injection. There was also a significant inverse linear relationship (r = -.528) between individual hamsters' food intakes and PG levels over the range of insulin dosages. In Experiment 2, insulin (30 units/kg) caused increases in meal frequency but not in meal size, and hyperphagia developed within +3 hr of insulin administration. When food was not available, insulin caused PG levels to fall below control levels at +1 hr and to remain depressed until at least +6 hr post-injection. However when hamsters were allowed to eat, PG did not fall significantly below control levels until +3 hr and began to recover at +5 hr post-injection. Results are discussed in relation to several apparent peculiarities in the hamster's behavioural response to regular insulin, specifically the small magnitude and the slow development of insulin-induced hyperphagia, and the hamster's relative insensitivity to the hyperphagic effect of insulin.