Repeated blood glucose measures using a novel portable glucose meter.

We describe the use of a novel portable blood glucose meter to repetitively and rapidly measure blood glucose levels in mice. We used this apparatus to replicate in the mouse, an insulin tolerance test (ITT) developed for humans. This test involves repeated glucose sampling (0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, and 20 min) after an IV bolus of 0.4 IU/Kg of insulin. We first ran comparative tests with a conventional automated glucose analyser to assess the precision and reliability of the blood glucose meter for use in the mouse. High correlation were found between the two measures using either capillary or trunk whole blood. The variability of measurement over five consecutive determinations was about 3%. It was possible to take repetitive measures at about 70 s intervals.