Hypoglycemic effect of Hydrocotyle bonariensis Comm. Ex Lam. leaf extract in an experimental type 2 diabetes rat model

Abstract

Abstract Background Hydrocotyle bonarensis Comm. Ex Lam. (Araliaceae) leaf water infusion is traditionally used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus (DM) in Côte d’Ivoire and other parts of Africa. However, scientific studies validating these claims are limited. Objective The study was designed to investigate the hypoglycemic activity of water extract from H. bonarensis leaf with the hope to validate the traditional usage of H. bonarensis leaf in the treatment of DM. Methods The H. bonarensis leaf infusion was prepared and administered at 250 and 500 mg/kg body weight (bw) once daily to high-fat fed streptozotocin-induced diabetes rats for three (3) weeks. α-Amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities were employed to reveal the mechanism of hypoglycemic potential of the extract. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to detect the possible phytochemicals of the extract. In addition, in silico study based on molecular docking was conducted for possible interaction of the compounds with α-amylase (PDB ID: 1B2Y) and α-glucosidase (PDB ID: 3W37). Results The results revealed that H. bonarensis leaf water extract showed significant ( p < 0.05) reduction in fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels, ameliorated insulin resistance and improved pancreatic β-cell function compared to diabetic untreated animals and comparable to metformin treated group. However, the extract demonstrated weak modulatory effects on lipid profiles. Notably binding energies were observed between the compounds and the target proteins involving both hydrophilic and hydrophobic interaction. With regards to the compounds 1,2,3-trimethoxy-5-(1E)-1-propen-1-ylbenzene and α-amylase, a docking score of -5.8 kcal/mol was uncovered, while thymol and hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester showed a docking score of -5.1 and − 5.0 kcal/mol with α-glucosidase, respectively. Conclusion The data confirms the traditional usage of H. bonarensis leaf water extract in improving glycemia and recommend further detailed molecular and toxicological studies to support the present data. Clinical trial number Not applicable.