Effect of bitter melon (Momordica Charantia) fruit juice on the hepatic cytochrome P450-dependent monooxygenases and glutathione S-transferases in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Bitter melon, a popular vegetable of the Asian and African community, is used as an antidiabetic herb for the management of diabetes and its associated complications. The fastest growing metabolic disorder, diabetes mellitus (DM), is now a major cause of morbidity and mortality in developed countries. All the associated complications produced in diabetes are mainly caused by the imbalance between generation of free radicals and the antioxidant systems like catalase (CAT) and super oxide dismutase (SOD) enzymes. Again increased level of serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) and serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT) are considered a consequence of hepatocyte damage due to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and patients with diabetes have an increased risk NAFLD and steatohepatitis. The present study was aimed at evaluating the effects of fixed dose combination therapy of Momordica charantia crude methanolic extract with metformin on oxidative stress and liver dysfunction indices in alloxan-induced diabetic Swiss Albino rats. Various groups of alloxan-induced diabetic rats (AIDRs) were daily treated for four weeks with bitter melon extract (BME) [(300 mg/kg body weight (BW)], metformin [(15 mg/kg body weight (BW)] and their combination dose (150 mg/kg BW + 7.5 mg/kg BW), separately through oral gavage. In our study, we observed that combination therapy lowered SGPT & SGOT level by 34.58% and 47.89%, respectively and increased SOD & CAT enzyme activity by 74.94% and 43.36%, respectively in comparison with their diabetic control groups. The changes obtained from the combination therapy were significantly (p<0.05) better than those of metformin and BME therapy alone. These findings suggest that this fixed dose combination therapy is more potent than their individual monotherapy and diabetic patients with increased oxidative stress and liver complications may be benefited by using this treatment. Bangladesh Pharmaceutical Journal 22(1): 34-40, 2019

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Modulation of Human Cytochrome P450 by Momordica charantia (Bitter Melon)

The FASEB Journal ◽

10.1096/fasebj.23.1_supplement.688.5 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 23 (S1) ◽

Author(s):

Pranjal A Shah ◽

Philip Eck ◽

Pratibha V Nerurkar

Keyword(s):

Cytochrome P450 ◽

Momordica Charantia ◽

Bitter Melon ◽

Human Cytochrome

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Effectiveness of Antihyperglycemic Effect of Momordica charantia: Implication of T-Cell Cytokines

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2017/3707046 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2017 ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Rufine Fachinan ◽

Akadiri Yessoufou ◽

Magloire Pandoua Nekoua ◽

Kabirou Moutairou

Keyword(s):

Antioxidant Activity ◽

Type 1 Diabetes ◽

Fruit Juice ◽

Diabetic Rats ◽

Momordica Charantia ◽

Antioxidant Compounds ◽

Phytochemical Analysis ◽

Low Doses ◽

Cytokine Quantification

Background/Objective. We investigate the effect of antidiabetic Momordica charantia fruit juice on T cells’ differentiation, through plasmatic cytokine quantification in type 1 diabetic rats (T1D). Methods. Male Wistar rats were rendered diabetic by the injection of five low doses of streptozotocin. Then, animals were treated with Momordica charantia fruit juice for 28 consecutive days. Plasmatic levels of Th1 interleukin- (IL-) 02 and interferon- (IFN-) γ, Th2 (IL-4), and regulatory (IL-10) cytokines were determined in rats. Results. We observed that fruit juice induced a significant decrease in blood glucose of T1D rats. Besides, the concentrations of IL-2 and IFN-γ significantly increased while those of IL-4 and IL-10 diminished in diabetic rats compared to control animals. Interestingly, after treatment with Momordica charantia fruit juice, IL-4 and IL-10 levels significantly increased in diabetic rats, while IL-2 and IFN-γ concentrations decreased, suggesting a Th2 phenotype in these animals. Phytochemical analysis of the fruit juice revealed the presence of tannins, flavonoids, and coumarins, compounds which possess antioxidant activity. Conclusion. This study shows that Momordica charantia fruit juice, by lowering the hyperglycemia, induced a shift of proinflammatory Th1 phenotype in T1D rats towards a favorable anti-inflammatory Th2 status. These effects might be due to the presence of antioxidant compounds in the juice and confirms the use of this plant in the treatment of autoimmune type 1 diabetes.

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