ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the chemical and surgical induction of Type I diabetes models other than streptozotocin (STZ) diabetes, along with some comparisons to the more commonly used STZ diabetic model. The mechanism by which alloxan induces diabetes is considered, followed by a discussion of the nature of the diabetic state in rabbits where alloxan is widely used to study the long-term complications of diabetes. Alloxan is used to induce diabetes in numerous species, and the advantages and disadvantages as compared with STZ are discussed. When investigators have wanted a model in which the mechanism of induction of diabetes includes, at least partly, the immune response that occurs in Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (IDDM) in humans, STZ combined with complete Freund's adjuvant has been used. Alloxan-induced diabetes in rats is associated with an increase in free fatty acid levels and ketone bodies not seen in STZ diabetic animals.
