Phytotherapeutic efficacy of the medicinal plant Terminalia catappa L.

Publication date: Available online 17 December 2018Source: Saudi Journal of Biological SciencesAuthor(s): Natarajan Divya, R.L. Rengarajan, Ramalingam Radhakrishnan, Elsayed Fathi Abd_Allah, Abdulaziz A. Alqarawi, Abeer Hashem, Ramasamy Manikandan, Arumugam Vijaya AnandAbstractDiabetes is a chronic, lifelong condition due to inadequate production of insulin or the cells does not properly respond it. Recently, the significance and effectiveness of herbal drugs associated with diabetes has emerged. The aim of the present study was to determine the anti-diabetic effects of Terminalia catappa L. leaves on streptozotocin (STZ)-treated rats. Two different concentrations of ethanolic leaf extract (300 and 500 mg/kg) of T. catappa were used to treat diabetic rats, and biochemical parameters were analyzed in blood samples. The results of herbal treatments were compared with the standard drug, glibenclamide. The ethanol extract (500 mg/kg) had significant anti-diabetic activity by reducing blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, liver glycogen, glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 1,6-bisphosphate, glucokinase, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, urea and creatinine levels while increasing insulin levels. Thus, the present study suggests that the supplementation of the diabetic patients with T. catappa leaves can lead to recovery from diabetic effects.
Source: Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences - Category: Biology Source Type: research