simultaneous effects of aerobic training and berberine chloride on plasma glucose, il-6 and tnf-α in type 1 diabetic male wistar rats

Background and objectives: aerobic training and berberine chloride include antioxidant and anti-inflammatory characteristics. in the current study, simultaneous effects of aerobic training and berberine chloride on plasma glucose, il-6 and tnf-α were investigated in type 1 diabetic male wistar rats. materials and methods: in this experimental study, 64 male wistar rats were randomly divided into eight groups (n=8), including healthy control, diabetic control, diabetic-berberine (15 and 30 mg/kg), diabetic-training, diabetictraining-berberine (15 and 30 mg/kg) and health-trained. diabetes was induced using a single intraperitoneal injection (ip) of streptozotocin (stz) of 60 mg/kg body weight (bw). the training schedule included running on a treadmill for six weeks, five sessions a week and daily intakes of berberine using gavage. the il-6 and tnf-α values were assessed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) method. results: results showed that the glucose concentration in diabetic groups with aerobic training and intake of berberine simultaneously was significantly lower than that in the diabetic control group (p<0.05). plasma il-6 in the diabetic control group significantly increased, compared to that in the normal control group (p<0.05). in diabetic groups that received the two treatments simultaneously, il-6 significantly increased, compared to that in the diabetic control group (p<0.05). the quantity of tnf-α in the diabetic control group was significantly higher than that in the normal control group (p<0.05). the plasma level of tnf-α significantly decreased in all treatment groups, compared to that in the diabetic control group (p<0.05). conclusions: combined effects of berberine chloride use and aerobic training on blood glucose, il-6 and tnf- α are more evident than their individual effects. furthermore, a dose of 30 mg/kg of berberine chloride included a greater effect on the highlighted blood parameters, compared to that a dose of 15 mg/kg of berberine chloride did.