Effect of L-carnitine on diabetes-induced changes of skeletal muscles in rats.

Background: Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are at risk of experiencing chronic complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy and myopathy. We aimed to evaluate the effects of L-carnitine on type II DM (T2DM)-induced biochemical, contractile and pathological changes in skeletal muscles of rats.

Methods: Thirty-two male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into the control, control+L-carnitine, T2DM and T2DM+L-carnitine groups.

Effects of long-acting erythropoietin analog darbepoetin-α on adriamycin-induced chronic nephropathy.

Objectives: To study the effects of darbepoetin-α (DPO-α) (erythropoietin analog) on adriamycin (ADR)-induced chronic nephropathy in rats.

Methods: Sixty-nine male Sprague-Dawley rats divided into 3 groups (23 rats each): negative control group: normal rats received saline as a vehicle; positive control (ADR) group: rats received 2 iv injection of ADR via penile vein at 14-day interval without treatment; and DPO-α group: as ADR group but rats received sc DPO-α (0.3 μg/kg bw) once weekly for 12 weeks.