The Effect of High Intensity Interval Training on Lipocalin 2 Gene Expression in Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue and Insulin Function in Obese Rats with Induced Diabetes

Introduction: Genetic evidence indicates the effective role of transcription factors in insulin signaling pathways. The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effect of high intensity interval training (HIIT) on gene lipocalin2 expression in subcutaneous adipose tissue, as well as glucose and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic obese rats. Methods: For this purpose, obesity was induced in 21 male Wistar rats aged 10 by 8 weeks of high-fat diet. Type 2 diabetes was induced in 14 rats by intraperitoneal injection of STZ (25 mg/dL).The rats were divided into obese, diabetic control and HIIT diabetic groups.HIIT group participated in an 8-week HIIT (5 sessions/weekly), sand the control groups did not participate in the exercise program.48 hours after the last training session, glucose, HbA1C, insulin resistance, and lipocalin2 gene expression in subcutaneous adipose tissue were measured and compared by one-way ANOVA test. Results: Type 2 diabetes induction increased glucose and insulin resistance (P=0.001) as well as the expression of lipocalin2 (P=0.001) compared to the obese group. On the other hand, HIIT significantly decreased glucose, insulin resistance (P=0.001) as well as lipocalin2 gene expression (P=0.002) in subcutaneous adipose tissue compared to the diabetic control group. Conclusion: HIIT was associated with improvement of glycemic profile and insulin resistance in diabetic rats, and this may be attributed to the increase in lipocalin2 gene expression in subcutaneous adipose tissue in response to HIIT.