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Diabetes mellitus is characterized by chronic hyperglycemia–induced oxidative stress and electrolyte disturbances that exacerbate tissue injury and long-term complications. Traditional use of Tetracera alnifolia in Nigerian ethnomedicine suggests it may possess antidiabetic and antioxidant properties worthy of scientific evaluation. Adult Wistar rats were rendered diabetic via a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (65 mg/kg) and, after confirmation of hyperglycemia, randomly assigned to six groups (n=6): three groups received daily oral doses of T. alnifolia ethanol extract (200, 500, or 800 mg/kg) for 35 days; one group received glibenclamide (5 mg/kg); one remained untreated diabetic control; and one served as healthy control. Fasting blood glucose was measured on days 1, 7, 14, 21, 28, and 35. At study end, livers and pancreases were harvested for assessment of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities, respectively, and serum was analyzed for potassium levels. T. alnifolia extract induced a dose–dependent decline in fasting blood glucose, with the 800 mg/kg dose achieving values comparable to glibenclamide by day 35. Hepatic GPx activity, suppressed by diabetes (2.86 ± 0.38 U/g), was restored to 34.26 ± 0.62 U/g at 800 mg/kg (Table 4.1), exceeding the glibenclamide response (20.65 ± 0.01 U/g). Pancreatic GR activity rose from 2.42 ± 0.22 U/g in diabetic controls to 8.41 ± 0.26 U/g and 10.28 ± 1.28 U/g in the 800 mg/kg and glibenclamide groups, respectively (Table 4.2). Serum potassium, diminished by diabetes, was normalized across all extract doses. The ethanol extract of T. alnifolia exerts potent hypoglycemic, antioxidant, and electrolyte‐ stabilizing effects in STZ‐induced diabetic rats, validating its traditional antidiabetic use. These findings support further molecular and histopathological studies to clarify its mechanisms and therapeutic potential
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