The MOE Key Laboratory for Standardization of Chinese Medicines and the SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources and Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicines, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1200 Cailun Road, Shanghai 201203, PR China; Central Research Institute, Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co., Ltd., Building 5, 898 Halei Road, Shanghai 201203, PR China.
The MOE Key Laboratory for Standardization of Chinese Medicines and the SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources and Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicines, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1200 Cailun Road, Shanghai 201203, PR China.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2018 Mar 1;213:101-110. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2017.10.032. Epub 2017 Nov 2.
The prevalence of diabetes among all age groups worldwide was estimated to be more than 382 million in 2013. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been practiced for thousands of years, and substantial valuable experience and prescriptions have been accumulated in the TCM system for the treatment of diabetes. In recent decades, a large amount of experimental and clinical data has been published on the use of herbal medicines related to these ancient TCM prescriptions.
This study aimed to discover a method for the investigation of potential antidiabetic herbs from the large amount of data in ancient TCM formulas and modern publications and to verify this method through an in vitro bioactivity study.
In our review, the most frequently cited TCM herbs were selected as potential antidiabetic herb candidates on the basis of TCM philosophical theory (ancient TCM formulas) and Western medicine philosophical theory (modern publications). The ethanol and aqueous extracts of the selected herbs were screened for their α-glucosidase inhibitory, glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS), and intestinal glucose transport inhibitory effects.
Twelve herbs [Terminalia chebula Retz., fructus immaturus, dried; Poria cocos (Schw) Wolf., sclerotium, dried; Zea mays L., stigma, dried; Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi, radix, dried; Cucurbita moschata (Duch. ex Lam.) Duch. ex Poiret, fructus, dried; Lycium barbarum L., fructus, dried; Glycine max (L.) Merr., semen, fermented; Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., radix and rhizoma, dried; Dioscorea opposita Thunb., rhizoma, dried; Morus alba L., folium, dried, Morus alba L., fructus, dried; and Polygonatum odoratum (Mill.) Druce, rhizoma, dried] were finally selected as candidates with potential glucose-lowering effects after a review was performed of herbs that are frequently cited in ancient TCM formulas and modern publications. The bioactive study results demonstrated that both the ethanol extracts and crude polysaccharides of M. alba L., fructus, dried, and M. alba L., folium, dried, and the crude polysaccharides of T. chebula Retz., fructus immaturus, dried, exhibited α-glucosidase inhibitory effects. Moreover, the crude polysaccharides of P. cocos (Schw) Wolf., sclerotium, dried; Z. mays L., stigma, dried; and T. chebula Retz., fructus immaturus, dried, exhibited favorable GSIS effects, and the ethanol extracts of P. odoratum (Mill.) Druce, rhizoma, dried; T. chebula Retz., fructus immaturus, dried; and G. uralensis Fisch., radix and rhizoma, dried, significantly decreased glucose transport across the cell monolayer.
Our review and the preliminary bioactive study revealed that 10 of the 12 recommended edible TCM herbs had favorable antidiabetic effects, demonstrating that TCM herbs with a high prescription and publication frequency may provide insights into the potential therapeutic targets of diabetes mellitus and may aid in the discovery of effective compounds complementary to currently used medicines. Such a literature and medicine review is a useful method of exploring potential antidiabetic herbs by using the wealth of information in ancient TCM formulas and modern publications.
据估计，2013 年全球所有年龄段的糖尿病患病率超过 3.82 亿。中医药已有数千年的历史，在中医药体系中积累了大量有价值的经验和处方，用于治疗糖尿病。近几十年来，大量关于与这些古代中医药方相关的草药的实验和临床数据已经发表。
本研究旨在从大量古代中医药方和现代出版物的数据中发现潜在的抗糖尿病草药的研究方法，并通过体外生物活性研究验证该方法。
在我们的综述中，根据中医药哲学理论（古代中医药方）和西方医学哲学理论（现代出版物），选择最常被引用的中医药草药作为潜在的抗糖尿病草药候选物。选择的草药的乙醇和水提取物被筛选出其对α-葡萄糖苷酶的抑制、葡萄糖刺激的胰岛素分泌（GSIS）和肠葡萄糖转运的抑制作用。
经过对古代中医药方和现代出版物中经常引用的草药进行综述，最终选择了 12 种草药[诃子（诃子）、未成熟果实，干；茯苓（茯苓）、菌核，干；玉米（玉米）、柱头，干；葛根（葛根）、根，干；南瓜（南瓜）、果实，干；枸杞（枸杞）、果实，干；甘草（甘草）、根和根茎，干；山药（山药）、块茎，干；桑（桑）、叶，干，桑（桑）、果实，干；黄精（黄精）、根茎，干]作为具有潜在降血糖作用的候选物。生物活性研究结果表明，M. alba L.、fructus、dried 和 M. alba L.、folium、dried 的乙醇提取物和粗多糖，以及 T. chebula Retz.、fructus immaturus、dried 的粗多糖均具有α-葡萄糖苷酶抑制作用。此外，P. cocos (Schw) Wolf.、sclerotium、dried；Z. mays L.、stigma、dried；和 T. chebula Retz.、fructus immaturus、dried 的粗多糖表现出良好的 GSIS 作用，而 P. odoratum (Mill.) Druce、rhizoma、dried；T. chebula Retz.、fructus immaturus、dried；和 G. uralensis Fisch.、根和根茎，干，乙醇提取物显著降低了细胞单层的葡萄糖转运。
我们的综述和初步的生物活性研究表明，12 种推荐食用的中医药草中有 10 种具有良好的降血糖作用，这表明具有高处方和高出版频率的中医药草可能为糖尿病的潜在治疗靶点提供了新的思路，并有助于发现与现有药物互补的有效化合物。这种文献和医学综述是一种有用的方法，可以利用古代中医药方和现代出版物中的大量信息来探索潜在的抗糖尿病草药。
