Biochemical study of the anti-diabetic action of the Egyptian plants Fenugreek and Balanites

Abstract

Fenugreek and Balanites are two plants commonly used in Egyptian folk medicine as hypoglycemic agents. In the present study, the effects of 21 days oral administration of Fenugreek seed and Balanites fruit extracts (1.5 g/kg bw) on the liver and kidney glycogen content and on some key liver enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism in STZ-diabetic rats were studied. In addition, the effects of these two plant extracts on the intestinal alpha-amylase activity in vitro and starch digestion and absorption in vivo were also examined. Results indicated that single injection of STZ (50 mg/kg bw) caused 5-folds increase in the blood glucose level, 80% reduction in serum insulin level, 58% decrease in liver glycogen and 7-folds increase in kidney glycogen content as compared to the normal levels. The activity of glucose-6-phosphatase was markedly increased, whereas, the activities of both glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and phospho-fructokinase were significantly decreased in the diabetic rat liver. Administration of Fenugreek extract to STZ-diabetic rats reduced blood glucose level by 58%, restored liver glycogen content and significantly decreased kidney glycogen as well as liver glucose-6-phosphatase activity. Meanwhile, Balanites extract reduced blood glucose level by 24% and significantly decreased liver glucose-6-phosphatase activity in diabetic rats. On the other hand, our results demonstrated that both the Fenugreek and Balanites extracts were able to in vitro inhibit alpha-amylase activity in dose-dependent manner. Fenugreek was more potent inhibitor than Balanites. This inhibition was reversed by increasing substrate concentration in a pattern which complies well with the effect of competitive inhibitors. Furthermore, this in vitro inhibition was confirmed by in vivo suppression of starch digestion and absorption induced by both plant extracts in normal rats. These findings suggest that the hypoglycemic effect of Fenugreek and Balanites is mediated through insulinomimetic effect as well as inhibition of intestinal alpha-amylase activity.

Antioxidant Small Phenolic Ingredients in Inonotus obliquus (persoon) Pilat (Chaga)

“…10,11) In this context, antioxidant property of Chaga attracts much attention. Although it was reported that polyphenolic fraction of Chaga extract showed antioxidant activity, the structures of the antioxidant principle were left unclear.…”

Warfighter Sustainability Maximizing Human Performance in Hostile Environments

“…In addition, fenugreek has been shown to influence the insulin cell-signaling pathway (Broca et al, 2004;Vijayakumar et al, 2005), increasing glucose uptake in insulin sensitive tissues. These effects, along with the up-regulation of metabolic enzymes (Raju et al, 2001;Vats et al, 2003;Mohamad et al, 2004;Gad et al, 2006;Mohammad et al, 2006) and increased muscle and liver glycogen storage (Vats et al, 2003;Ruby et al, 2005;Gad et al, 2006), are consistent with the adaptations that occur with regular exercise training, suggesting that fenugreek supplementation may increase exercise capacity.…”

“…Chronic 4-OH-Ile supplementation in the form of fenugreek has shown promising results in alleviating symptoms of diabetes in rodents (Raju et al, 2001;Vats et al, 2003;Mohamad et al, 2004;Thakran et al, 2004;Gad et al, 2006;Mohammad et al, 2006;Narender et al, 2006) and in humans (Madar et al, 1988;Sharma et al, 1990;Sowmya & Rajyalakshmi, 1999;Abdel-Barry et al, 2000;Gupta et al, 2001). These studies have demonstrated a decrease in blood glucose (Madar et al, 1988;Sharma et al, 1990;Abdel-Barry et al, 2000;Gupta et al, 2001;Raju et al, 2001;Vats et al, 2003;Mohamad et al, 2004;Gad et al, 2006;Mohammad et al, 2006), total cholesterol (Sharma et al, 1990Sowmya & Rajyalakshmi, 1999;Narender et al, 2006), triglycerides (Sharma et al, 1990;Gupta et al, 2001;Narender et al, 2006), free fatty acids (Narender et al, 2006), and an increase in HDL cholesterol (Gupta et al, 2001) and pancreatic -cell insulin release (Sauvaire et al, 1998). In addition, fenugreek has been shown to influence the insulin cell-signaling pathway (Broca et al, 2004;Vijayakumar et al, 2005), increasing glucose uptake in insulin sensitive tissues.…”

AnIn VitroandIn VivoStudy of the α-Amylase Activity of Phaseolamin

“…This type of inhibitor can be used to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. [3][4][5][6] Phaseolamin is a glycoprotein that was characterized in 1975, is present in white beans and kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), and contains an a-amylase inhibitor termed a-AI. 7 Moreover, phaseolamin is used as a dietary supplement and is present in pharmaceutical products marketed as protein concentrates for weight management.…”