Markers of glycemic control in the mouse: comparisons of 6-h- and overnight-fasted blood glucoses to Hb A1c

Abstract

The present studies examined the relationship between fasting blood glucose and Hb A1cin C57BL/6J, DBA/2J, and KK/HlJ mice with and without diabetes mellitus. Daily averaged blood glucose levels based on continuous glucose monitoring and effects of 6-h vs. overnight fasting on blood glucose were determined. Daily averaged blood glucose levels were highly correlated with Hb A1c, as determined with a hand-held automated device using an immunodetection method. R2values were 0.90, 0.95, and 0.99 in KK/HIJ, C57BL/6J, and DBA/2J, respectively. Six-hour fasting blood glucose correlated more closely with the level of daily averaged blood glucose and with Hb A1cthan did blood glucose following an overnight fast. To validate the immunoassay-determined Hb A1c, we also measured total glycosylated hemoglobin using boronate HPLC. Hb A1cvalues correlated well with total glycosylated hemoglobin in all three strains but were relatively lower than total glycosylated hemoglobin in diabetic DBA/2J mice. These results show that 6-h fasting glucose provides a superior index of glycemic control and correlates more closely with Hb A1cthan overnight-fasted blood glucose in these strains of mice.