Diabetes Insulin Resistance

Refined carbohydrate sources such as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are used in many processed foods and surveys in the U.S. have suggested that the intake of this sweetener has increased dramatically since the 1970s. As we have learned over the past few decades, an excess intake of refined carbohydrates is associated with increased weight gain, hypertriglyceridemia (hyper-TG), and insulin resistance (IR) in humans and animal models. In order to understand more about the impact of refined carbohydrates on health and therapies to reduce these metabolic syndrome (MS) phenotypes, certain rodent models have been useful. Purified diets containing around 60% - 70% (by energy) fructose or sucrose (which is a 50:50 molar mixture of fructose and glucose) are capable of elevating TG and glucose production in the liver, ultimately leading to IR and hyper-TG relative to diets containing mainly glucose carbohydrate sources (i.e. dextrose, corn starch).

Types of Diets

High fructose, High sucrose

Commonly Used Strains

Sprague-Dawley, Wistar rats, Hamsters, C57BL/6, LDLr KO

Matched Control Diets

Purified Ingredient match*

*For those requiring a matched control diet, be sure to use a purified ingredient matched diet rather than a grain-based diet.