Diabetes is closely connected with skeletal muscle dysfunction. Ellagic acid (EA) possesses a variety of bio-effects and is applied to the improvement of diabetes. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential improvement effect and mechanisms of EA in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic muscle atrophy. The model of diabetic mice was established by intra-peritoneal STZ to evaluate treatment effect of EA (100 mg/kg/d for 8 weeks) on muscle atrophy. Our data exhibited that EA enhanced fiber size and weight of gastrocnemius, and promoted grip strength to relieve STZ-induced muscle lesions. In serum, the levels of Creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) were inhibited, while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) level was enhanced by EA treatment in diabetic mice. In gastrocnemius, EA decreased Atrogin-1 and MuRF-1 expressions to relieve STZ-induced muscle atrophy. Moreover, EA increased NRF-1 and PGC-1alpha expressions to alleviate mitochondrial disorder. Meanwhile, EA suppressed CHOP and GRP-87 levels to relieve ER stress. Lastly, EA inhibited BAX expressions and enhanced Bcl-2 expressions to mitigate apoptosis. In conclusion, EA is preventing the event of STZ-induced gastrocnemia by amelioration of mitochondrial dysfunction, ER stress and apoptosis, and could be used in the protection and therapeutic of muscle atrophy in diabetes.

Faculty of Science College of Furong Hunan University of Arts and Science Changde China

Institute of Physical Culture Hunan University of Arts and Science Changde China

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