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The present study was designed to investigate the antihyperglycaemic effect of ethanolic extract of Cardiospermum halicacabum Linn. (Sapindaceae) leaves on normal and streptozotocin (STZ) diabetic rats. Diabetes was induced into male albino Wistar rats by intraperitonial administration of STZ. The Cardiospermum halicacabum leaf extract (CHE) was administered orally at three different doses to normal and STZ-diabetic rats for 45 days. The diabetic rats showed an increase in levels of blood glucose and glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA 1c) and a decrease in the levels of insulin and haemoglobin (Hb). In addition, diabetic rats showed a significant reduction in the activity of glucokinase and an elevation in the activities of gluconeogenic enzymes such as glucose-6-phosphatase and fructose-1, 6-bisphosphatase. Treatment with CHE significantly decreased plasma glucose and HbA 1c , and increased the levels of insulin and Hb. CHE administration to diabetic rats reversed these enzyme activities in a significant manner. Thus, the results show that CHE possesses an antihyperglycaemic activity and provide evidence for its traditional usage in the control of diabetes. The 200 mg dose of the extract produced a better effect than 50 or 100 mg doses.

The present study was designed to investigate the antihypertensive and antioxidant effect of Melothria maderaspatana leaf extract (MME) on sham-operated and DOCA-salt (deoxycorticosterone acetate) induced hypertensive rats. Administration of DOCA-salt significantly increased the systolic (from 127 to 212 mm Hg) and diastolic (from 91 to 174 mm Hg) blood pressure compared to sham-operated control rats, while treatment with MME significantly reduced the systolic (from 212 to 135 mm Hg) and diastolic (from 174 to 96 mm Hg) blood pressure compared to hypertensive control. In DOCA-salt rats, the plasma and tissue concentration of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and lipid hydroperoxide (LOOH) significantly increased and administration of MME significantly reduced these parameters towards the levels in sham-operated control. In hypertensive rats, activities of the enzymatic antioxidants such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and levels of non-enzymatic antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E and reduced glutathione (GSH) decreased significantly in the plasma and tissues. Administration of MME returned the enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants towards sham-operated control. MME shows both antihypertensive and antioxidant properties in DOCA-salt hypertensive rats and, among the three different doses tested, 200 mg/kg caused the maximum effect.

In this study we investigated the antioxidant and antihyperlipidemic of an ethanolic leaf extract of Cardiospermum halicacabum (CHE) in plasma and tissues of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. The plasma and tissue concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and lipid hydroperoxide were significantly elevated in STZ diabetic rats. CHE administration decreased TBARS and lipid hydroperoxide levels. The plasma vitamin E level increased and the vitamin C level decreased. The reduced glutathione level significantly decreased in plasma and tissues, as did the activities of enzymatic antioxidants. The enzymatic and non enzymatic alterations reversed toward normalcy after treatment with CHE. STZ-induced diabetic rats showed significant increases in plasma total cholesterol, phospholipids, triglycerides, and free fatty acids, which returned to near normalcy in CHE-treated animals. Plasma LDL-C and VLDL-C increased and HDL-C decreased and both reverted to near normalcy following CHE treatment. We conclude that CHE possesses antioxidant and hypolipidemic effects in diabetic rats, which may be due to the presence of flavonoids, such as apigenin and luteolin in the extract.