Fasting hyperglycaemia with oral glucose tolerance in acute Trypanosoma congolense infection of rats

Intraperitoneal inoculation of rats with Trypanosoma congolense (Federe str ain) produced a sustained parasitaemia from days 7 to 23 post-infection (pi ). The fasting tail-blood glucose (FBG) concentrations in the infected anim als increased (p<0.05) from 3.8+/-0.2 mmol/l on day 0 pi to 4.6+/-0.2, 4.9/-0.2 and 5.8+/-0.3 mmol/l on days 7, 10 and 17 pi and decreased (p<0.05) t o 3.1+/-0.8 and 2.9+/-0.7 mmol/l on days 20 and 23 pi, but the values in th e uninfected controls varied between 3.8+/-0.3 mmol/l on day 0 pi and 3.9+/ -0.2 mmol/l on day 23 pi. After oral glucose intake (1.0 g/kg) and determin ation of tail-blood glucose (BG) concentrations after 2 h, the percentage i ncrease in BG from FBG was either comparable in infected and uninfected gro ups (days 7, 20, 23 pi) or lower (p<0.05) in the infected group (days 10, 1 7), suggesting the same rate of tissue glucose delivery in both groups or a faster rate in the infected group. Therefore, oral glucose tolerance in th e infected rat was not impaired, but there was initial fasting hyperglycaem ia followed by fasting hypoglycaemia in the later stage. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.