Streptozotocin treatment and induction of diabetes

Before receiving the experimental diets, 16 rats were separated and induced with diabetes with a single intraperitoneal injection of buffer (0.1 moL/L sodium citrate, pH 4.5) of streptozotocin (STZ, Sigma Aldrich S0130) at a dose of 60 mg/kg (19). Normal groups were given citrate buffers to be submitted to the same injection protocol. After 72 hours, diabetes was confirmed by the measurement of glycemic levels after a 5-hour fasting period, and animals that had plasma levels of 270 mg/dL or greater were considered in the experiment (13). The animals were divided to initiate treatment.