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Anacardium occidentale L. (Anacardiaceae) is used in South Cameroon as well as in other tropical countries by traditional practitioners as a folk remedy for treatment of diabetes mellitus. We demonstrated the antidiabetic potential of the plant extracts in n-streptozotocin diabetic rats. The aim of the current study was to investigate the antidiabetic effects of ethanol extract of leaves of A. occidentale on neonatal streptozotocin diabetic rats.Two day old neonates were injected with 100 mg/kg of streptozotocin. At the end of the experimental period of 30 days, reduction in the fasting blood glucose levels, serum insulin, glycated hemoglobin levels, serum lipid parameters, and renal function biomarkers were estimated in the control and treated rats. Histopathological examination of liver, kidney and pancreas were also carried out.On administration of 100 mg/kg of plant extract, blood glucose levels of the rats showed 8.01% and 19.25% decrease in the fasting blood glucose levels on day 15 and day 30, respectively. The administration of extract showed that the effects of extract treatment are comparable to treatment with the standard drug Pioglitazone.These results demonstrate significant antidiabetic potential of the ethanol extract of leaves of A. occidentale, justifying the use of plant in the indigenous system of medicine. Further studies for investigating the specific compound(s) responsible for such beneficial role in diabetes would open new outlook in the therapy of type 2 diabetes.

Objective: To evaluate the immunomodulatory activity of the aerial roots of Ficus benghalensis (Family Moraceae). Materials and Methods: Various extracts of the aerial roots of Ficus benghalensis were evaluated for potential immunomodulatory activity, using the in vitro polymorphonuclear leucocyte (human neutrophils) function test. The methanol extract was evaluated for immunomodulatory activity in in vivo studies, using rats as the animal model. The extracts were tested for hypersensitivity and hemagglutination reactions, using sheep red blood cells (SRBC) as the antigen. Distilled water served as a control in all the tests. Results: The successive methanol and water extracts exhibited a significant increase in the percentage phagocytosis versus the control. In the in vivo studies, the successive methanol extract was found to exhibit a dose related increase in the hypersensitivity reaction, to the SRBC antigen, at concentrations of 100 and 200 mg/kg. It also resulted in a significant increase in the antibody titer value, to SRBC, at doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg in animal studies. Conclusion: The successive methanol extract was found to stimulate cell mediated and antibody mediated immune responses in rats. It also enhanced the phagocytic function of the human neutrophils, in vitro.

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