The regulation of glycemia in the recovery phase after stroke counteracts the detrimental effect of obesity-induced type 2 diabetes on neurological recovery
We investigated whether obesity-induced T2D impairs neurological recovery after stroke by using a clinically relevant experimental design. We also investigated the potential efficacy of two clinically-used T2D drugs: the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor linagliptin and the sulfonylurea glimepiride.
We induced transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO) in T2D/obese mice (after 7 months of high-fat diet (HFD)) and age-matched controls. After stroke, we replaced HFD with standard diet for 8 weeks to mimic the post-stroke clinical situation. Linagliptin or glimepiride were administered daily from 3 days after tMCAO for 8 weeks. We assessed neurological recovery weekly by upper-limb grip strength. Brain damage, neuroinflammation, stroke-induced neurogenesis and atrophy of parvalbumin (PV)+ interneurons were quantified by immunohistochemistry.
T2D/obesity impaired post-stroke neurological recovery in association with hyperglycemia, neuroinflammation and atrophy of PV+ interneurons. Both drugs counteracted these effects. In non-diabetic mice, only linagliptin accelerated recovery.
These findings shed light on the interplay between obesity and T2D in stroke recovery. Moreover, they promote the use of rehabilitative strategies based on efficacious glycemia regulation, even if initiated days after stroke.