Mentha pulegium aqueous extract exhibits antidiabetic and hepatoprotective affects in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work was to evaluate the antihyperglycemic activity of aerial parts aqueous extract (A.P.A.E) of Mentha pulegium (M. pulegium) on blood glucose levels in normal and streptozotocin(STZ)-induced diabetic rat. Also the glucose tolerance was evaluated in normal rats. Moreover, the histological sections and morphometric analysis at the liver and pancreas have been carried out in this investigation both in normal and STZ-diabetic rats.

METHODS: The effect of A.P.A.E of M. pulegium (20 mg/kg) on blood glucose levels was investigated in normal and diabetic rats (n=6). Histopathological changes in liver and pancreas were examined under phase contrast microscope and a preliminary screening for various bioactive constituents was realized according to standard methods.

KEY FINDINGS: Both single and repeated oral administration of A.P.A.E (20 mg/kg) caused a significant reduction on blood glucose levels in STZ-diabetic rats (p<0.0001). The morphometric analysis and histological sections realized in pancreas and liver have showed the beneficial effect of the A.P.A.E in cellular population. According to oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), the aqueous extract has revealed an improvement of glucose tolerance in normal rat. Furthermore the preliminary phytochemical screening of A.P.A.E of M. pulegium has demonstrated the presence of various metabolite compounds including polyphenols, flavonoids, terpenoids tannins, cyanidins, sesquiterpenes, and glycosides.

CONCLUSION: we conclude that the A.P.A.E of M. pulegium (20 mg/kg) exhibits a potent antihyperglycemic activity in STZ diabetic rats.