Physical training in diabetic rats: effect on glucose tolerance and serum lipids

The effect of 10 wk of treadmill training on glucose tolerance, serum lipids, tissue lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activities, and triglyceride secretion rates (TGSR) were studied in normal and diabetic rats. Training had little effect on the glucose tolerance of the normal rats but ameliorated the deterioration of glucose intolerance seen in the sedentary diabetic rats. Trained diabetic and normal rats had lower serum triglycerides than their sedentary counterparts [diabetic 34 +/- 5 vs. 61 +/- 4 (means +/- SE); normal 34 +/- 3 vs. 50 +/- 3 mg/dl]. This hypotriglyceridemic effect was associated with a reduction in the TGSR in the trained rats (diabetics 0.34 +/- 0.05 vs. 0.51 +/- 0.02; normal 0.48 +/- 0.05 vs. 0.53 +/- 0.04 mg/min). There were no differences in the tissue LPL activities (soleus, gastrocnemius, epididymal fat, and heart) between the trained and sedentary rats in both groups. Training also did not affect the serum cholesterol and the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in both groups of rats.