Purpose:
This study aims to investigate the therapeutic effects of the aqueous extract of
Clitoria ternatea
Linn. Fabaceae leaves and flowers on alloxan-induced diabetes in rats.
Methods:
The effect of orally administered aqueous extracts (400 mg/kg body weight) of Clitoria
ternatea leaves and flowers on serum glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, and insulin were examined in
control and extract-treated diabetic rats. The glycogen content of the liver and skeletal muscles of the
rats was evaluated while the activities of the glycolytic enzyme, glucokinase, and the gluconeogenic
enzyme, glucose-6-phosphatase in the liver were assessed. The extracts were administered over a
period of 84 days.
Results:
The aqueous extracts of
Clitoria ternatea leaves and flowers significantly (P<0.05) reduced
serum glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin and the activities of gluconeogenic enzyme, glucose-6-
phosphatase, but increased serum insulin, liver and skeletal muscle glycogen and the activity of the
glycolytic enzyme, glucokinase. For all the biochemical tests performed, the leaf extract-treated rat
showed essentially the same profile as those treated with the flower extract.
Conclusion:
The present investigation suggests that
Clitoria ternatea leaf and flower extracts exhibit
antihyperglycaemic effect in rats with alloxan-induced diabetes mellitus.
