Background: Irisin is a recent myokine that decreases obesity and enhances insulin resistance by converting white adipose tissues to brown, leading to increase thermogenesis and lower insulin resistance.
Objective: The impact of moderate swimming exercise combined with dietary vitamin D on serum irisin levels was evaluated in a type II diabetes rat model (T2DM).
Material and Methods: This study was conducted between September and December 2020 on 50 male adult albino rats at the animal house of physiology department, Al-Azhar university. Rats have been split into 5 equal groups: Group I was the control group, Group II was the diabetic control group, Group III was the diabetic exercise group, Group IV was the diabetic group that received vitamin D, and Group V was the diabetic exercise group that received vitamin D. Serum was collected after the experiment to determine glucose, insulin, resistance to insulin, irisin levels, and lipid profiles.
Results: Diabetic rats exhibited hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, and high insulin resistance accompanied by significant hypoinsulinemia, and low serum irisin level. The results also showed that moderate swimming exercise and vitamin D supplementation improved serum level of irisin, glucose, insulin, insulin resistance, and lipid profile (Cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides) in diabetic rats. The combination of vitamin D and moderate swimming gives the best effects. Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation with moderate exercise is very beneficial to diabetic patients. Irisin can be used later on as a biomarker for insulin resistance as it had a strong negative association with it.