Immunomodulation of low dose streptozocin diabetes in mice reveals that insulitis is not obligatory for B cell destruction.

Twenty male C57Bl/J mice were injected with 50 microliters complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) 1 wk before and 1 wk after induction of diabetes with 45 mg streptozocin (STZ)/kg body weight i.p. over 5 d. CFA administration prevented islet infiltration. Inflammatory cells were not seen within any of the islets observed. However, islet B cell destruction still occurred. These cells showed evidence of considerable damage, containing swollen mitochondria, contracted nuclei and areas of vacuolation and degranulation. Inflammation is therefore not obligatory for the development of low dose STZ induced diabetes.