##Establishment of DM and DN animal models
We induced diabetes models according to the protocols of Animal Models
of Diabetic Complications Consortium.
Sprague-Dawley rats weighing
160–180 g were induced to diabetes with a single 60 mg/kg
intraperitoneal injection of freshly prepared STZ (Figure 1A). The
DN-SRS group was then treated with intraperitoneal injection of SRS
16-86 at a dose of 15 mg/kg once/day from week 1 to week 8 after STZ
treatment, while the DN group was treated with the same dose of
dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) (Figure 1A).
Blood
glucose in the DN and DN-SRS groups was significantly higher than that
in the control group 3 days after STZ treatment; moreover, both the DN
and DN-SRS groups’ body weight was significantly lower than that in the
control group, proving that the diabetic animal model was successfully
constructed (Figure 1B,1C). We evaluated renal function changes by
measuring 24-hour urine volume, creatinine (CRE2U), and
urine total protein (UTP).
As shown in Figure 2, 24-hour
urine volume and the content of CRE2U and UTP in the DN and DN-SRS
groups were markedly higher than those of control group at the 8-week
time point, indicating that the DN animal model was successfully
constructed (Figure 2A,2B,2C).