Obesity and diabetes mellitus with striking congenital hyperplasia of the islets of langerhans in spiny mice (Acomys Cahirinus)

Abstract

Spiny mice (Acomys) are a group of small rodents indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and Africa. The Acomys Cahirinus strain reported on here is indigenous to Israel. The strain is characterized by striking and congenital hyperplasia of the islets of Langerhans, primarily of the beta cells. The endocrine tissue contributes up to 15 per cent of the pancreatic mass in adults, up to 25 per cent in the newborn. Pancreatic insulin content may be as high as 100 units per gram wet weight. When fedad libitum in the laboratory approximately one-half of the animals become obese, while approximately 15 per cent develop a diabetes mellitus-like state with moderate hyperglycemia, glucosuria, and, less frequently, ketonuria accompanied by weight loss and, ultimately, death. The development of the diabetic state is associated with degranulation and, later, striking glycogenic degeneration of the beta cells of the islets of Langerhans. There is also severe glycogenic nephrosis and myocardosis and preliminary observations suggest the presence of thickening of the capillary basement membrane of the renal glomeruli and in the endocrine pancreas. The interrelationships of hyperplasia of the islets of Langerhans, obesity, and diabetes mellitus are as yet to be established, as are the genetic characteristics of each of these entities. An important area of potential usefulness derives from the degree of the hyperplasia of the endocrine tissue, since this should greatly facilitate ultrastructural studies, microdissection and transplantation, as well as organ or tissue culture work. Also, the association of anomalies observed in these spiny mice may, through their systematic study, provide clues for the study of the association of diabetes and obesity with relative hyperinsulinism in man.

Correction of diabetic pattern of insulin release from islets of the spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus) by glucose priming in vitro

“…This study deals with the dynamics of insulin secretion in a rodent with predisposition to mild, non-ketotic hyperglycaemia [9]. Except for a slight difference in the basal insulin secretion rate, both the kinetics and the magnitudes of the insulin responses to glucose were comparable whether islets were obtained from hyperglycaemic or from normoglycaemic Aeomys, and the sluggishness and reduced amplitude of the response resembled findings in vivo in patients with Type 2 diabetes [2][3][4][5][6][7].…”

“…To elucidate the metabolic defect(s) of the/3 cells, suitable animal models for Type 2 diabetes are needed. The spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus) is a semi-desert rodent which has been studied extensively as a model for Type 2 diabetes in man [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. Bred in captivity, these animals demonstrate various degrees of glucose intolerance, become obese with age and develop hyperglycaemia.…”

Granulolysis in a Cells of Endocrine Pancreas in Spontaneous and Experimental Diabetes in Animals

“…All specimens which we have examined exhibited marked congenital hyperplasia of the islets of Langerhans (5 plasma and pancreas, and finally by ketonuria. 1 Streptozotocin is a N-nitroso derivative of glucosamine and has antibiotic and antitumoral properties.…”

Sekoke Disease, Spontaneous Diabetes in Carp Found in Fish Farms-II

“…[2][3][4][5] Many recent works on diabetes mellitus in animals, especially on diabetic rodents, 2,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12] have described hyperglycemia, decreased glucose tolerance, glycosuria, and sometimes, ketoacidosis, as major features of diabetic syndrome. Hence, similar changes were pos tulated to occur in Sekoke disease.…”