Pharmacology Department, School of Medicine, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
BMC Complement Altern Med. 2014 Jun 3;14:180. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-14-180.
Moringa stenopetala has been used in traditional health systems to treat diabetes mellitus. One of the successful methods to prevent of the onset of diabetes is to control postprandial hyperglycemia by the inhibition of α-glucosidase and pancreatic α-amylase activities, resulting in the aggressive delay of the carbohydrate digestion of absorbable monosaccharides. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of the extract of the leaves of Moringa stenopetala on α-glucosidase, pancreatic α-amylase, pancreatic lipase, and pancreatic cholesterol esterase activities, and, therefore find out the relevance of the plant in controlling blood sugar and lipid levels.
The dried leaves of Moringa stenopetala were extracted with hydroalcoholic solvent and dried using rotary vapor under reduced pressure. The dried extracts were determined for the total phenolic compounds, flavonoid content and condensed tannins content by using Folin-Ciocateu's reagent, AlCl3 and vanillin assay, respectively. The dried extract of plant-based food was further quantified with respect to intestinal α-glucosidase (maltase and sucrase) inhibition and pancreatic α-amylase inhibition by glucose oxidase method and dinitrosalicylic (DNS) reagent, respectively.
The phytochemical analysis indicated that flavonoid, total phenolic, and condensed tannin contents in the extract were 71.73 ± 2.48 mg quercetin equivalent/g of crude extract, 79.81 ± 2.85 mg of gallic acid equivalent/g of crude extract, 8.82 ± 0.77 mg catechin equivalent/g of crude extract, respectively. The extract inhibited intestinal sucrase more than intestinal maltase with IC50 value of 1.47 ± 0.19 mg/ml. It also slightly inhibited pancreatic α-amylase, pancreatic lipase and pancreatic cholesterol esterase.
The result demonstrated the beneficial biochemical effects of Moringa stenopetala by inhibiting intestinal α-glucosidase, pancreatic cholesterol esterase and pancreatic lipase activities. A daily supplement intake of the leaves of Moringa stenopetala may help in reducing hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia.
辣木已被传统医疗体系用于治疗糖尿病。预防糖尿病发生的一种有效方法是通过抑制α-葡萄糖苷酶和胰α-淀粉酶的活性来控制餐后高血糖，从而延缓可吸收单糖的碳水化合物消化。本研究旨在探讨辣木叶提取物对α-葡萄糖苷酶、胰α-淀粉酶、胰脂肪酶和胰胆固醇酯酶活性的影响，从而找出该植物在控制血糖和血脂水平方面的相关性。
辣木叶用醇水溶剂提取，减压旋转蒸发仪干燥。采用福林-肖卡特试剂、AlCl3和香草醛法分别测定干燥提取物中的总酚含量、黄酮含量和缩合单宁含量。利用葡萄糖氧化酶法和二硝基水杨酸（DNS）试剂分别测定植物源性食品的干燥提取物对肠道α-葡萄糖苷酶（麦芽糖酶和蔗糖酶）抑制和胰α-淀粉酶抑制的作用。
植物化学分析表明，提取物中黄酮类、总酚类和缩合单宁类的含量分别为 71.73±2.48mg 槲皮素当量/g 粗提物、79.81±2.85mg 没食子酸当量/g 粗提物和 8.82±0.77mg 儿茶素当量/g 粗提物。提取物对肠道蔗糖酶的抑制作用强于肠道麦芽糖酶，IC50 值为 1.47±0.19mg/ml。它还轻微抑制了胰α-淀粉酶、胰脂肪酶和胰胆固醇酯酶。
结果表明，辣木通过抑制肠道α-葡萄糖苷酶、胰胆固醇酯酶和胰脂肪酶的活性，具有有益的生化作用。每日补充辣木叶可能有助于降低高血糖和高血脂。
