Ginsenosides, the active component of Panax ginseng, have been shown to evidence a variety of biological activities associated with hyperglycemia, obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. This study evaluated the effects of the ginsenosides, Rg3 and Re, on glucose uptake and the glucose transport system in mature 3T3-L1 cells. The results demonstrated that the glucose uptake of ginsenosides Rg3 and Re at concentrations of 1-10 µM significantly increased by approximately ∼10% and ∼12%, respectively. Furthermore, the glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) mRNA expression of ginsenosides Rg3 and Re at 10 µM was increased by approximately ∼1.73 and 1.43 fold, respectively. It was further confirmed in a series of experiments that ginsenosides Rg3 and Re stimulated the mRNA expression of insulin receptor substrate (IRS-1) and the expression of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-110α protein, which is involved in downstream events in the insulin signaling pathway. These findings demonstrate that ginsenosides Rg3 and Re may stimulate glucose uptake via the PI3K pathways involving IRS-1. Further, our results suggest that both of these ginsenosides might prove useful as effective antidiabetic and antihyperglycemic agents.
Pycnogenol, a procyanidins-enriched extract of Pinus maritima bark, possesses antidiabetic properties, which improves the altered parameters of glucose metabolism that are associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Since the insulin-stimulated antidiabetic activities of natural bioactive compounds are mediated by GLUT4 via the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) and/or p38 mitogen activated protein kinase (p38-MAPK) pathway, the effects of pycnogenol were examined on the molecular mechanism of glucose uptake by the glucose transport system. 3T3-L1 adipocytes were treated with various concentrations of pycnogenol, and glucose uptake was examined using a non-radioisotope enzymatic assay and by molecular events associated with the glucose transport system using semi-quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The results show that pycnogenol increased glucose uptake in fully differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes and increased the relative abundance of both GLUT4 and Akt mRNAs through the PI3K pathway in a dose dependent manner. Furthermore, pycnogenol restored the PI3K antagonist-induced inhibition of glucose uptake in the presence of wartmannin, an inhibitor of the PI3K. Overall, these results indicate that pycnogenol may stimulate glucose uptake via the PI3K dependent tyrosine kinase pathways involving Akt. Further the results suggest that pycnogenol might be useful in maintaining blood glucose control.
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