Effects of hydroalcoholic extract of Celtis iguanaea on markers of cardiovascular diseases and glucose metabolism in cholesterol-fed rats

In this study, we investigated the effects of the hydroalcoholic extract from C. iguanaea on markers of cardiovascular diseases and the glucose metabolism in cholesterol-fed rats. Therefore, hypercholesterolemic rats (1% cholesterol) were orally treated with C. iguanaea extract (C-150, CI-300, or CI-600 mg/kg) or simvastatin (4 mg/kg) (n = 6) once a day (30 days) with a hypercholesterolemic diet. A control group (C) was given saline. C. iguanaea extract showed significant decreases in serum levels of total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HMG-CoA-reductase, interleukin-1 and 6, TNF- α and IFN- γ when compared to group C (p< 0.001). Hypoglycemic effects were observed along with a decrease of the activity of sucrase (CI-600), maltase (CI-150, CI-300), and an increase in muscle glycogen levels (CI-300). Antioxidant effects were observed in plasma by the decrease of TBARS and increase of nonprotein thiols levels (CI-600). The histopathological analysis showed a significant decrease in the liver fat area for C. iguanaea extract compared to group C (p< 0.001). Our results suggest that the biological effects of C. iguanaea extract could be related to the flavonoids that possibly exert antioxidant, enzymatic inhibitory, and insulin-mimetic effects.
Source: Revista Brasileira de Farmacognosia - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: research