Upregulation of GLUT4 Expression and Glucose Homeostasis by Synthetic Peptides HL-7 and HL-10 in in-vitro and in-vivo Diabetic Models

This study aimed to investigate the effect of two synthetic peptides, HL-7 and HL-10, extracted from the venom of H. lepturus , on insulin secretion and glucose absorption. The INS-1 cell line was used to measure the amount of insulin secretion in the culture medium, while the HSkMC cell line was applied to analyze the amount of glucose uptake and GLUT4, AMP and Akt gene expression. Also, streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats were used to assess plasma glucose, insulin concentrations, and GLUT4 gene expression levels in soleus muscle isolated from rats. Finally, the in-silico analysis evaluated the interaction of the two peptides with the transcription factor NF-κB. The results showed that the amount of insulin released and glucose uptake by INS-1 and HSkMC cells treated with HL-7 and HL-10 peptides significantly increased (p