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Differences in the estrous cycles of Goto-Kakizaki and Wistar rats

Lab Animal volume 45, pages 143–148 (2016)Cite this article

Abstract

Goto-Kakizaki rats are an important model of type 2 diabetes, but it is difficult to maintain and expand colonies of these rats because they exhibit poor fertility. In this work, we studied the estrous cycle of Goto-Kakizaki and Wistar rats to characterize differences that might underlie these reproductive difficulties. We monitored rats from weaning to vaginal opening to assess pubertal development, and we monitored the estrous cycle and basal glycemia of each rat for 20 days at 1 month of age and at 6 months of age. At an early age we found no differences between Goto-Kakizaki and Wistar rats with respect to the onset of puberty or the periodicity of the estrous cycle. However, at 6 months Goto-Kakizaki rats spent more time in proestrus and less time in estrus each cycle, compared to Wistar rats. This delay in proceeding from proestrus to estrus could reflect a dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, accompanying progression of the diabetic condition. It might also cause anovulatory cycles, which could explain the reduced reproductive capacity of Goto-Kakizaki rats.

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Figure 1
Figure 2: Glycemia (mean ± s.e.m.) was significantly higher in Goto-Kakizaki rats than in Wistar rats at both 1 month of age and 6 months of age.
Figure 3: The percentage of time that females spent in proestrus (mean ± s.e.m.) was significantly higher for Goto-Kakizaki rats than Wistar rats at 6 months of age, but not at 1 month of age.
Figure 4: The percentage of time that females spent in estrus (mean ± s.e.m.) was significantly lower for Goto-Kakizaki rats than Wistar rats at 6 months of age, but not at 1 month of age.
Figure 5: The percentage of time that females spent in diestrus did not differ significantly between Goto-Kakizaki rats and Wistar rats at either age.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the University of Cadiz Central Service of Animal Production and Experimentation (SEPA) for the care and maintenance of our animals and helpful suggestions in this report. We especially recognize the help and assessment of the SEPA Director, Dr. Carlos Costela.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Anatomy and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Cádiz, Cádiz, Spain

    Ana Rosa Wakim Pinto-Souza, Chiara Firetto, Gonzalo Pérez-Arana & José Arturo Prada-Oliveira

  2. Department of Child and Mother Health and Radiology, Pediatric Endocrinology, Puerta del Mar University Hospital, University of Cádiz, Cádiz, Spain

    Alfonso María Lechuga-Sancho

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  1. Ana Rosa Wakim Pinto-Souza
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  2. Chiara Firetto
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  5. José Arturo Prada-Oliveira
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Correspondence to Alfonso María Lechuga-Sancho or José Arturo Prada-Oliveira.

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Pinto-Souza, A., Firetto, C., Pérez-Arana, G. et al. Differences in the estrous cycles of Goto-Kakizaki and Wistar rats. Lab Anim 45, 143–148 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.980

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