Improvement of antioxidant balance in diabetes mellitus type 1 mice by glutathione supplement

Diabetes mellitus (DM) type 1 is a chronic disease characterized by hyperglycemia and lacking of insulin. Oxidative stress participates in development and progression of DM, in which changes of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione (GSH) content were noted in DM mice. In this study, the effects of GSH supplement on anti-oxidation system in streptozotocin-induced DM type 1 Imprinting Control Region (ICR) mice were determined. The co-treatment of insulin and GSH significantly lowered the hepatic manganese superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD), CAT, and GPx mRNA expression. Moreover, co-administration of insulin and GSH restored SOD and CAT activities to non-DM group except that of the CAT activity in the kidney. The GSH contents and GSH/GSSG ratio in the mouse livers were normalized to the normal levels by the GSH treatment and the coadministration of insulin and GSH. These observations reveal that GSH supplement potentially has the protective roles in delaying diabetic progression via the improvement of antioxidant balance.