Nelumbo nucifera leaves extract attenuate the pathological progression of diabetic nephropathy in high-fat diet-fed and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Publication date: Available online 8 January 2019Source: Journal of Food and Drug AnalysisAuthor(s): Huan-Wei Chen, Mon-Yuan Yang, Tung-Wei Hung, Yun-Ching Chang, Chau-Jong WangAbstractDiabetic nephropathy is not only a common and severe microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus but also the leading cause of renal failure. Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) possesses antioxidative and anticancer properties. The present study aimed to investigate the antidiabetic and renoprotective effects of N. nucifera leaf extract (NLE) in a rat model of type 2 diabetic mellitus. Male Sprague–Dawley rats with type 2 diabetes induced by a high-fat diet (HFD)/streptozotocin (STZ) were treated with NLE at dosages of 0.5% and 1% (w/w) daily for 6 weeks. At the end of the experimental period, body weight, serum glucose levels, insulin levels, and kidney function were assessed. Furthermore, antioxidant enzyme and lipid peroxide levels were determined in the kidney, and histopathological examination was performed using hematoxylin and eosin staining, periodic acid Schiff staining, and Masson trichrome staining. To shed light on the molecular mechanism underlying the functioning of NLE, mouse glomerular mesangial cells (MES-13) treated with high glucose (HG, 25 mM glucose) were chosen as a model for an examination of the signal transduction pathway of NLE. The results revealed that NLE improved diabetic kidney injury by reducing blood glucose, serum creatinine, and blood urea nitrogen levels and enh...
Source: Journal of Food and Drug Analysis - Category: Food Science Source Type: research