Immunomodulator Drug (IMOD™) and Exercise Improve Cardiac Oxidative Stress and Antioxidant Balance in Diabetic Rats

Diabetes is a common metabolic disease that increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. It seems that the reduction of oxidative stress or increasing antioxidant levels improves diabetic cardiomyopathy. Antioxidant effects of immunomodulatory drug (IMOD (TM)) and also beneficial influences of exercise on diabetic complications have been shown. The present study examined the effects of IMOD (TM) and exercise on cardiac oxidative stress and antioxidants in diabetes. For this purpose, 64 rats were divided into 8 groups: control (C), exercise (E), IMOD (TM) (20 mg/kg) (I), exercise plus IMOD (TM) (E + I), diabetes (D), diabetic rats treated with exercise (D + E), diabetic rats treated with IMOD (TM) (D + I), and diabetic rats treated with exercise plus IMOD (TM) (D + E + I). Treatments with exercise and/or IMOD (TM) were performed for 8 weeks. Type 1 diabetes was induced by intraperitoneal injection of 60 mg/kg streptozotocin. After the treatment period, all rats were anesthetized, and blood and heart samples were gathered for measurement of malondialdehyde (MDA) as an oxidative stress marker, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) as a cardiac injury marker, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) as well as glutathione peroxidase (GPx) as antioxidant enzymes. The present study, for the first time, showed that IMOD (TM) alone or in combination with exercise had positive effects on alleviating hyperglycemia, MDA, and LDH along with elevation of antioxidant enzymes activities in type 1 diabetic rats.