Oat beta-glucan ameliorates insulin resistance in mice fed on high-fat and high-fructose diet

METHODS: This study sought to evaluate the impact of oat beta-glucan on insulin resistance in mice fed on high-fat and high-fructose diet with fructose (10%, w/v) added in drinking water for 10 weeks. RESULTS: The results showed that supplementation with oat beta-glucan could significantly reduce the insulin resistance both in low-dose (200 mg/kg(−1) body weight) and high-dose (500 mg/kg(−1) body weight) groups, but the high-dose group showed a more significant improvement in insulin resistance (P<0.01) compared with model control (MC) group along with significant improvement in hepatic glycogen level, oral glucose, and insulin tolerance. Moreover, hepatic glucokinase activity was markedly enhanced both in low-dose and high-dose groups compared with that of MC group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: These results suggested that supplementation of oat beta-glucan alleviated insulin resistance and the effect was dose dependent.