Effect of Eight-Week High Intensity Interval Training on Omentin-1 Gene Expression and Insulin-Resistance in Diabetic Male Rats

Omentin-1, a novel adipokine expressed in visceral adipose tissue, is negatively correlated with insulin-resistance and obesity.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of eight weeks of high-intensity interval training on omentin-1 gene expression in visceral adipose tissue and insulin-resistance in male wistar rats.

A total of 26 male Wistar rats (mean weight = 110±10 gr) were purchased from Pasteur Institute in Iran. At first, six rats were separated as base control group and, after eight weeks of feeding with normal diet, were dissected and their visceral adipose tissues were sampled: The remaining rats were given a high-fat diet for eight weeks. After this, seven rats were separated into the non-diabetic fat group (obese HIIT). Then, diabetes was induced on the remaining animals After eight weeks, diabetic rats were divided into two groups—diabetic control group (n=6) and diabetic HIIT exercise group (n=7). The exercise group ran on treadmill for eight weeks—five days a week with a speed of 29–36 m/min and intensity of 90% of VO2Max. The activity was repeated five times in the first week, which increased to 12 times in the last week. A total of 48 hours after last session, fasting blood glucose and insulin were measured. Omentin gene expression was measured from visceral adipose tissue.

 Results showed that omentin-1 gene expression was increased significantly after eight weeks of HIIT. Blood glucose and insulin-resistance decreased significantly in training groups (p=0.001).

It can be concluded that eight weeks of HIIT induce high omentin-1 gene expression and reduce fasting glucose level and insulin-resistance in diabetic male wistar rats.