Prevention of diabetic glomerulopathy in streptozotocin diabetic rats by insulin treatment. Kidney size and glomerular volume.

Kidney weight and glomerular volume have been studied in groups of insulin-treated streptozotocin diabetic rats maintained at high, or nearly normal plasma glucose levels. Kidney weight and glomerular volume in these groups were compared to a non-diabetic control group. --Rats with nearly normal plasma glucose levels (95 +/- 35 to 182 +/- 20 mg/100 ml) had the same kidney weight as the non-diabetic controls, 1.04 +/- 0.14 and 1.07 +/- 0.09 g, respectively. In the rats with constant high plasma glucose (338 +/- 71 to 555 +/- 86 mg/100 ml) kidney weight was significantly increased, 1.73 +/- 0.20 g, compared to each of the two other groups. Glomerular volume was 0.559 millimicron3 in the diabetic animals with nearly normal plasma glucose, a value very close to that of the non-diabetic controls, 0.587 milimicron3. In animals with high plasma glucose concentrations glomerular volume was 0.775 millimicron3, 2 p less than 0.03 compared with both other groups. --The study indicates that good diabetic control for 6 months prevents the development of large kidneys and large glomeruli in dibatic rats.