[Islet transplantation in type II diabetes mellitus--model of the spontaneous diabetic Cohen rat].

The spontaneous diabetic Cohen-rat is one of the few animal models of the diabetes mellitus Type II (NIDDM). A spontaneous diabetic animal line and a diabetes-resistant line originated from a parental lineage by genetic selection with regard to the glucose tolerance on condition of feeding of a saccharose-rich and copper-poor diet. In each case 1000 islets of the diabetes-resistant line were transplanted in 28 animals of the diabetic line. Body weight, blood-sugar concentration, glucosuria, glucose tolerance, and the HbA1 were normalized after the transplantation. The serum levels of insulin and glucagon increased. These results emphasize etiopathogenetic importance of the islets of Langerhans in this animal model.