title: Estradiol ameliorates diabetes-induced changes in vaginal structure of db/db mouse model.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Women with diabetes experience diminished genital arousal, reduced vaginal lubrication, vaginal atrophy, dyspareunia, and increased infections. Limited studies are available investigating the effects of diabetic complications on the vagina.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The goals of this study were to investigate type 2 diabetes-induced changes in vaginal structure, and to determine if estradiol treatment ameliorates these changes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eight-week-old female diabetic (db/db) mice (strain BKS*Cg-m+/+Lepr(db)/J) and age-matched control normoglycemic female littermates were used to investigate the effects of type 2 diabetes on vaginal tissue structural integrity. Diabetic animals were divided into two subgroups: diabetic treated with vehicle only and diabetic treated with pellets containing estradiol. At 16 weeks, the animals were sacrificed, and the vaginal tissues were excised and analyzed by histological and immunohistochemical methods to assess diabetes-induced changes in vaginal tissue and the extent by which these parameters are restored by estradiol treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The effects of type 2 diabetes and estradiol supplementation were investigated on vaginal histoarchitecture.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Diabetic animals exhibited high blood glucose levels (>600 mg/dL), increased body weight (43.0 +/- 6.0 g vs. 24.4 +/- 2.0 g), and reduced plasma estradiol levels (65.5 +/- 6.6 pg/mL vs. 80.77 +/- 13.2 pg/mL) when compared to control animals. Diabetes resulted in significant thinning of the epithelium (P <or= 0.05), marked decrease in the muscularis area (P </= 0.05), distinct truncation of elastic fibers, and significant reduction of the nitrergic immunoreactive nerve fibers (P <or= 0.05). Treatment of diabetic animals with estradiol restored epithelial thickness (P <or= 0.05), muscularis area (P <or= 0.05), and elastic fiber distribution, and partially restored the density of nitrergic nerve fibers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The data in this study demonstrate that type 2 diabetes disrupts vaginal structural integrity and that estradiol supplementation ameliorates the diabetes-induced vaginal pathology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Tulay T
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Cushman
authors.forename: Noel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hoyt
authors.forename: Abdulmaged M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Traish
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D012735:Sexual Dysfunction, Physiological / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D014621:Vagina / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000294:innervation
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D004967:Estrogens; D004958:Estradiol