Effects of microstimulation of a peripheral sympathetic nerve fascicle on glucose uptake in rats

Abstract

We previously reported that electrical stimulation (burst rate = 2 bursts/s; each burst was comprised of 10 pulses of 0.25-ms width with 25-ms intervals) to a rat sympathetic fascicle in unilateral sciatic nerve induced temporal blood glucose reduction with little change in plasma insulin (PI) 30 s after the onset of the stimulation. In the present study, we evaluated effects of the stimulation (microstimulation (MS)) on steady glucose uptake determined with euglycemic clamp (EC) in rats (n=9). Glucose infusion rate (GIR) of EC, during MS was significantly higher (p<0.01) than that obtained before the onset of MS. Even after the termination of MS, GIR was still higher (p<0.05). PI changed little during the EC period. The results suggest that the enhancement of glucose uptake due to MS is not a transient phenomenon, is independent of insulin, and may be maintained even after the termination of MS.