Objective： To explore the effects and mechanisms of poly（ADP-ribose） polymerase（PARP） inhibitor 3-aminobenzamide on nerve lesions in streptozotocin-diabetic rats. Methods： Experimental rats were divided into normal control group（NC group）， diabetic control group（DC group）and diabetic group treated with 3-aminobenzamide（DT group）.Nerve conduction velocity （NCV），serum superoxide dismutase （SOD） activity and serum malondialdehyde （MDA） concentration，phosphocreatine （Pcr），creatine （Cr） concentration in sciatic nerves were evaluated after 4 weeks. Results： SOD，Pcr activity，and NCV were higher （P < 0.05） and MDA concentration were significantly lower in DT group， compared with DC group （P < 0.01）. Meanwhile， ATP and Cr in sciatic nerves were similar in DT group， compared with DC group （P > 0.05）. Conclusion： 3-aminobenzamide could alleviate the established functional and metabolic abnormalities of early DPN in the streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat models，which provided a novel approach for prevention and treatment of diabetic neuropathy.