The effects of a high fat diet on chronic streptozotocin-diabetic rats

The effects of a high fat diet (30% (w/w) corn oil) on chronic streptozotocin-diabetic rats were investigated at the whole body level and at the enzyme level. The diet caused significant decreases in the extent of polydipsia (66% decrease), polyphagia (49%), polyuria (67%) and glycosuria (70%). The activities of selected hepatic enzymes from the glycolytic, gluconeogenic, ureogenic and lipogenic clusters were determined. The fat diet caused significant decreases (range: 47 to 54%) in the activity of the ureogenic enzymes carbamyl phosphate synthetase, ornithine transcarbamylase and arginase; had no effect on the glycolytic enzymes glucokinase, hexokinase and pyruvate kinase; partially decreased the diabetes-induced elevated activities of the gluconeogenic enzymes phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (63% decrease), serine dehydratase (90%), alanine aminotransferase (31%) and aspartate aminotransferase (65%), and partially reversed the activity of one lipogenic enzyme, ATP citrate lyase.