Superiority of Purple Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) to Green Okra in Insulin Resistance and Pancreatic β Cell Improvement in Diabetic Rats

Abstract

Introduction: Antidiabetic medicinal plants are increasingly used in the treatment of diabetes as they are generally assumed to pro-duce minimal side effects. Okra is a quercetin-containing plant which can induce pancreas regeneration and has antidiabetic effect. There has been a lot of research that demonstrate that purple okra contains more quercetin than green okra. Aim: To demonstrate the advantages of purple okra over green okra on the diabetic markers improvement in diabetic rats. Materials and methods: Fifteen male 2-month-old Wistar rats were injected intraperitoneally with 65 mg streptozotocin and 110 mg niacinamide. Their blood glucose levels were measured three days after the injection. The induction of diabetes was deemed  successful if the glucose level of the rats got higher than 250 mg/dL, and then such rats were considered diabetic. The diabetic rats were divided into three groups: an acarbose group, a purple okra powder group, and a green okra powder group. The latter two were given, respectively, purple and green okra powder for 28 days. Blood serum was taken to examine the fasting blood glucose, insulin, HOMA-B and GLUT-4 levels. Pancreas was examined histologically for damage using hematoxylin eosin staining.  Results: Fasting blood glucose, insulin, HOMA-B, and GLUT-4 levels of diabetic rats that received purple okra powder (p<0.05) were better than those of the rats that received green okra powder. The least damage (p<0.05) to pancreatic beta cells was found in the purple okra powder group. Conclusions: Purple okra is superior to green okra in terms of improving the diabetic markers of rats.

Okra ameliorates hyperglycaemia in pre-diabetic and type 2 diabetic patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the clinical evidence

“…We found that okra treatment in pre-diabetic and T2D patients has beneficial effects on glycaemic control, as demonstrated by a significant reduction in the level of FBG. These findings are consistent with the results reported by previous researchers ( Khatun et al, 2011 ; Majd et al, 2018 ; Nguekouo et al, 2018 ; Husen et al, 2020 ; Uadia et al, 2020 ; Wu et al, 2020 ; Yan et al, 2020 ; Tyagita et al, 2021 ; Haque et al, 2022 ). One of the proposed mechanisms that okra targets in reducing FBG is the stimulation of hepatic glycogen synthesis and pancreatic islet regeneration, thus leading to increased insulin secretion and subsequent delay in the intestinal absorption of glucose.…”

The effect of perennial sow-thistle (Sonchus arvensis) leaf extract on blood glucose and plasma insulin levels of diabetic mice

“…The positive control group using acarbose on day 14 can reduce blood glucose levels until the mice are no longer in the diabetes category (> 200 mg/dL) (Malole and Purnomo 1989). The administration of acarbose in diabetic patients has improved pancreatic-cell function (Tyagita et al 2021). Increased blood glucose levels increase insulin secretion to improve the function of the remaining pancreatic β-cells (Chen et al 2014).…”

The effect of EKORMIN on rats with diabetes mellitus model: effectiveness on fasting blood glucose, MDA, and insulin levels

“…Quercetin works by inhibiting sucrase, intestinal maltase, and GLUT-2 to inhibit glucose absorption, resulting in a decrease in blood glucose (Tyagita et al, 2021). GLUT-2 plays a significant role in glucose homeostasis and is expressed in pancreatic and liver β cells.…”