Blood glycogen and metabolic control in diabetes mellitus.

The relationship between metabolic control and leukocyte glycogen content in diabetes mellitus was re-evaluated, blood glycogen being measured by an enzymatic procedure. In 30 healthy subjects, fasting blood glycogen averaged 50.6 +/- 2.8 mg l-1 or 7.45 +/- 0.42 ng 10(3)-cells-1, the latter value being unaffected during a 60-min period of induced hyperglycaemia. Comparable levels were found in 18 Type 1 insulin-treated diabetic patients (blood glycogen 50.4 +/- 4.6 mg l-1, leukocyte glycogen 6.92 +/- 0.50 ng 10(3)-cells-1), 6 insulin-treated diabetic patients presenting with chronic pancreatitis (blood glycogen 62.2 +/- 9.3 mg l-1, leukocyte glycogen 6.69 +/- 0.70 ng 10(3)-cells-1) and 12 Type 2 insulin-treated patients (blood glycogen 53.7 +/- 4.3 mg l-1, leukocyte glycogen 7.51 +/- 0.44 ng 10(3)-cells-1). In severely ketotic patients, leukocyte counts and blood glycogen (160.8 +/- 29.6 mg l-1, p less than 0.01 vs stable diabetic patients) were increased, but the leukocytic glycogen content was not significantly affected either before or during intensive insulin therapy and rehydration. The leukocyte glycogen content was abnormally low, however, in 9 untreated Type 2 diabetic patients (5.29 +/- 0.39 ng 10(3)-cells-1, p less than 0.02 vs healthy subjects) and abnormally high (10.77 +/- 0.65 ng 10(3)-cells-1, p less than 0.005 vs healthy individuals) in 30 Type 2 patients treated by sulphonylurea, alone or in combination with insulin. No correlation was found between leukocyte glycogen and either fasting plasma glucose or HbA1c.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)