A Preclinical Study on the Effects of Acarbose on Mice Rendered Obese with Gold Thioglucose

Abstract

The effect of acarbose has been studied in mice made obese and hyperinsulinemic by gold thioglucose (GTG). One month after GTG administration, when obesity started to develop, mice were treated orally with acarbose added to the chow at 50 mg/100 g. In half the experiments food was supplemented with 10% sucrose. Mice were weighed twice a week and were sampled each month for plasma glucose and insulin determinations. When the chow was not supplemented with sucrose, there was no difference over a 3-month period in body weight gain, blood glucose, or insulinemia between control and acarbose-treated obese mice. When the feed was supplemented with 10% sucrose, the body weight gain was less pronounced in treated (0.20 g/day) than in untreated obese mice (0.34 g/day). As shown in Table 1 (mean ± SEM of 32 values), acarbose treatment partly prevented the occurrence of hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia.

Acarbose (BAy g 5421) was supplied by Bayer AG, Federal Republic of Germany. Studies were supported by Bayer Pharma, France.