Figure 8

Chronic in vivo effect of tranilast was studied using db/db mice. Male db/db mice (8-weeks old) were orally administered either vehicle (0.5% CMC) or tranilast (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg) once daily for 4 weeks (n = 8 per group). (A) Non-fasting blood glucose, body weight and food intake were determined once a week. At the end of treatment, tissues were isolated and weighed. (B) After overnight fasting, oral glucose tolerance test was carried out after 4 weeks of tranilast administration. Area under the curve and fasting plasma insulin levels were determined. (C) mRNA levels of PDX-1, insulin, and FoxO-1 in whole pancreas were measured by real-time qPCR. (D) Representative pancreatic sections with immunohistochemical staining of pFoxO-1, FoxO-1, PDX-1, and insulin are shown (scale bar = 50 μm). The results of quantitative analysis were shown in the right panel. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.005 versus vehicle group.