Effect of 6-week Endurance Training on the Hippocampal Tissue in the Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats: A Histological Study

Introduction: Glial cells perform several critical functions and exercise can moderate many of these interventions, so a comprehensive study is needed to elucidate the mechanisms that influence brain function following diabetes and exercise. In this study, the quantitative histological changes of glial in the hippocampus of Streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats following endurance training were investigated. Methods: Twenty-four adult male Wistar Rats (aged 10 weeks with an average weight of 256 ± 11.8 g), were classified into four groups: Diabetic, diabetic trained, untreated control, and trained groups. Diabetes was induced by a single dose intraperitoneal injection of Streptozotocin (45 mg/kg). Then, moderate exercise was performed for 6 weeks (5 sessions in a week). Rats were anesthetized 48 hours after the last training session. Then, they were sacrificed and the hippocampal tissue was removed. Sections (5-6 µ) were prepared and stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin (H & E) staining method. Results: Histological evaluations showed that the number of astrocyte and oligodendrocyte cells in different hippocampal regions in diabetic rats significantly decreased compared to the untreated control and trained rats. However, the number of microglia cells in diabetic rats was significantly higher than that in the untreated control and trained rats (P ˂ 0.05). In addition, the number of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes significantly increased in the dentate gyrus, Cornu Ammonis, and subiculum of the hippocampal tissue after endurance training compared to the control group, while the number of microglial cells significantly decreased (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The findings of the present study confirmed the potential effects of moderate exercise on diabetes. Therefore, it seems that physical activity plays an essential role in improving the nervous complications in patients with diabetes.