Flavonoid Identification and Hypoglycaemic Studies of the Butanol Fraction from Gynura procumbens

Abstract

The methanol extract of the leaves of Gynura procumbens was partitioned between chloroform, ethyl acetate and nbutanol. Qualitative HPLC identification of the major flavonoid constituents in the n-butanol fraction and separation of standard mixture of isolated compounds from the n-butanol fraction are given. Blood glucose levels in streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic rats were reduced by the administration of 1 g/kg of the n-butanol fraction. The results were compared with glibenclamide used as standard drug. The fraction produced no significant effect in normal rats. Materials and methods Materials for hypoglycaemic studiesOven-dried powdered of the plant leaf, Male Sprague Dawley rats (190-250 g), streptozotocin (Sigma), distilled water, saline (0.9%), glibenclamide, YSI 2357 buffer concentrate, YSI 1531 standard D-glucose 900 mg/dl (CAS 50997) were obtained from commercial sources. ApparatusMelting points were determining on an electrothermal apparatus and are uncorrected. UV spectra were recorded on a Shimadzu UV-2000 ultraviolet spectrophotometer. Infrared spectra were recorded by IR Shimadzu 420 spectrophoto-

Induction, characterization, and NMR-based metabolic profiling of adventitious root cultures from leaf explants of Gynura procumbens

“…Caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid have anti-oxidant and anti-cancer activities (review in Korkina 2007), while 3,5-di-Ocaffeoylquinic acid exhibited anti-viral activity (Jiratchariyakul et al 2000). However, the bioactive flavonol-glucosides that were found in the leaves of G. procumbens and associated to anti-diabetic activity (Akowuah et al 2002) were not detected in the root culture. Interestingly, no signals of pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are associated with Gynura species were detected thus suggesting that the compounds were not present or produced at too low levels to be detectable in the adventitious root culture.…”

“…Zhang and Tan (2000) discovered that leaf extracts of G. procumbens significantly suppressed the level of elevated serum glucose, and reduced serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels in diabetic rats. Akowuah et al (2002) and Hassan et al (2010) showed significant hypoglycaemic effect of G. procumbens leaf extracts in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. In addition, Akowuah et al (2002) isolated flavonol glycosides (e.g.…”

“…Akowuah et al (2002) and Hassan et al (2010) showed significant hypoglycaemic effect of G. procumbens leaf extracts in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. In addition, Akowuah et al (2002) isolated flavonol glycosides (e.g. kaempferol 3-O-glucoside and quercetin-3-O-rhamnosyl (1?6) glucoside) as the major constituents in the n-butanol fraction of methanolic leaf extracts.…”

“…The plant is used for the treatment of many different ailments such as rash, kidney diseases, eruptive fever, hemorrhoids, and inflammation (Perry and Metzger 1980;Iskander et al 2002). The leaf of G. procumbens is not toxic (Rosidah et al 2009) and it has been used in folk medicine to control the blood sugar level of diabetic patients (Akowuah et al 2002). In traditional Chinese medicine, the roots of Gynura species have been consumed for promoting microcirculation and relieving pain (Dai et al 2007).…”

Angolan Cymbopogon citratus used for therapeutic benefits: Nutritional composition and influence of solvents in phytochemicals content and antioxidant activity of leaf extracts

“…Water and alcohol were primarily selected as the extraction solvents since both are more innocuous (in comparison with other solvents) and commonly used in the food industry. Nev-ertheless, methanol was also used as extractor solvent in this work, since previous studies reported better extraction rates for several bioactive compounds in this type of extracts (Bae et al, 2012;Cau-nii et al, 2012;Akowuah et al, 2002).…”