Chronic Immersion in 110 mM Glucose Solution Model of Hyperglycemia

Capiotti et al. (2014) introduced another method of inducing diabetic symptoms. Initially, three concentrations of 55, 110, and 166 mM of glucose solution were investigated. Due to the lower mortality rate of fish compared to the other two concentrations, they chose 110 mM concentrations for induction. In a 5-l tank containing 110 mM glucose, 15 zebrafish were incubated for 14 days. After 14 days, blood glucose levels increased up to four or five times in comparison to the control group. To assess the stability of this process, the zebrafish were placed in fresh water for 7 days. Measurements showed that blood glucose was still higher than the control group. By assessing fructosamine as an indicator of non-enzymatic glycation of proteins from the eyes of the zebrafish, they noticed elevated levels of fructosamine in the test group and even in the group that had been isolated for 7 days in fresh water, which confirms the reliability of the procedure. Therapies with anti-diabetic drugs, such as glimepiride and metformin were applied, which represent two different mechanisms of therapeutic. Short induction time as well as stability of hyperglycemic status are both prominent advantages of this method (Capiotti et al., 2014).