BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common metabolic disorders with a severe impact on the quality of life. OBJECTIVES: The objective of the present study was to investigate the impact of the hydroalcoholic extract of Eryngos on blood glucose, blood cells, and pancreatic tissue. METHODS: Thirty-five male rats were prepared. After diabetes induction by streptozotocin, they were randomly divided into 5 groups, including; non-diabetic control, diabetic control, diabetic treated with hydroalcoholic extract of Eryngos at doses of 300 and 500 mg/kg administered intraperitoneally, and metformin at a dose of 500 mg/kg. At the end of the study, glucose level was measured, and blood cells and pancreatic tissue were examined. RESULTS: Hydroalcoholic extract of Eryngos caused a significant reduction in blood glucose. Given the adverse effects of diabetes on the number of WBC, Eryngos extract at a dose of 300 mg/kg had a protective effect on the number of WBC. It decreased their number significantly compared with the diabetic control group. This effect was the same for both diabetic and non-diabetic groups. Histopathological results also indicated that Eryngos extract significantly increased the number of islets of Langerhans and beta cells. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the hydroalcoholic extract of Eryngos may be effective in the treatment of diabetes. Moreover, based on the biochemical and histological results, it can be concluded that the hypoglycemic effect of the extract is probably due to the restoration and repair of the islets of Langerhans

BACKGROUND: Equine metabolic syndrome is an endocrinopathy that affects different breeds of horses and ponies. This metabolic disorder is a multifactorial syndrome and it is primarily linked to obesity, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance. OBJECTIVES: The present study was performed to evaluate insulin resistance in Darehshori horses with regards to age, sex, season and obesity. METHODS: Twelve adult stallions and 14 non-pregnant Darehshori breed mares were selected between January and November 2015. Fourteen horses were under and others were above 10 years old. Body condition scores of the animals were estimated based on Hennekes’ 1 to 9 scoring system, thus, 1 is poor and 9 is extremely fat horse. Body condition score of 12 horses was under 5 and the others above 5. The horses were studied during a period of one year, every 45 days and blood sampling and body condition scoring were performed at each time. Insulin resistance was assessed based on screening test. Serum concentrations of glucose, insulin and leptin were determined. RESUTLS: This study comprehensively used multiple detailed parameters to scan thoroughly the concept of insulin resistance in Darehshori horses on a long term basis. The levels of insulin, glucose and leptin in aged and obese stallions in warmer months were significantly higher than the others and reference range (P<0.05), hence, insulin resistance was detected in these groups of studied animals. CONCLUSIONS: These findings represented insulin resistance phenomenon in a specific breed in Iran. The physiologic characteristics of this breed may be different from other ones and the conditions in Iran such as climate are different from other countries. Hence, it should be considered that Darehshori horses have unique characteristics compared with other breeds. The study may be used as a guideline for evaluating the insulin resistance in Darehshori horses.