Pterocarpus marsupium Ameliorates Hyperglycemia-Induced Hemato-Biochemical and Histoarchitectural Alterations in Diabetic Rats

The present study was undertaken to investigate the therapeutic potential of Pterocarpus marsupium ethanolic extract (PMEE) against experimentally high-fat diet (HFD) fed streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetes in male Wistar rats. Thirty male Wistar rats weighing 150-200g were divided into Five groups viz. control (Group I), obese (Group II), obese diabetic (OD) (Group III), OD plus Metfromin; Met (Group IV) and OD plus PMEE (Group V) containing six rats in each group. The rats were fed on high-fat diet (HFD) except control for four weeks. After four weeks of HFD feeding, streptozotocin (STZ) @ 35 mg/kg body wt. was injected intraperitoneally in rats of different groups except group I and II to induce obese-diabetic rat model and by measuring fasting blood glucose (FBG) (>200mg/dl), serum cholesterol (TC) (>80 mg/dl), and serum triglyceride (TRI) (>50 mg/dl) after 72 hrs of STZ administration to confirm diabetic rats. Oral administration of PMEE and Met @ 300 and 50 mg/kg body wt., respectively continuously for 60 days alleviated the clinical signs, characterized by reduced FBG and improved body weight. Relative organ weight of the diabetic group showed increased liver, kidney and heart weight, while the relative weight of the pancreas was significantly reduced. Met and PMEE treatment improved relative organ weight compared to Group III and was comparable to healthy control group. Increment in percent glycated hemoglobin (% HbA1c; biomarker of hyperglycemia and diabetes), and increased levels of TRI, TC and LDL recorded in Group III, whereas, improvement in biochemical indices in Met and PMEE treated groups underscore their protective potential. Histopathological (H&E) observations revealed degenerative changes in liver, kidney and heart tissues while shrunken islets and decreased beta cell mass in diabetic rats, however, Met and PMEE treated groups showed improved histoarchitecture.