Acute Antihyperglycaemic Effect of The Combination of Metformin and Ethanol Seed Extract of Moringa oleifera Lam. In Rats

Diabetes mellitus, Hyperglycaemia, Moringa oleifera seeds, Metformin, Subacute toxicity

*Corresponding author: asmau1981.bashir@gmail.com;
DOI:https://doi.org/10.61594/tnpr.v6i1.2025.120

Page No: 45-53
Volume: 6, Issue 1, 2025
Trends in Natural Products Research
Copy Right: NAPREG

Abstract

Moringa oleifera (MO) has been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various conditions and, more recently, has been proposed to be of benefit in numerous diseases including cardiovascular, diabetes, cancer, neurological, gastroenterological, and inflammatory disorders. It has been reported in animal models, that MO has antihyperglycaemic activity and can improve induced diabetic effects in rat. We aimed to study the antihyperglycaemic effect of MO in combination with metformin at a lower dose (125 mg/kg) in comparison to previous papers. The study was conducted on six groups of five rats each (n =5). The first group of rats were normal rats (administered distilled water, 1 ml/kg); while alloxan-induced hyperglycaemic rats were assigned accordingly to the remaining five groups. Group II rats served as hyperglycaemic control and were administered normal saline (1 ml/kg). Groups III, IV and V were hyperglycaemic rats treated with Moringa oleifera extract (MOE) at doses of 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg respectively in combination with metformin (125 mg/kg). Group VI (positive control) were hyperglycaemic rats treated with metformin (125 mg/kg) only. All administrations were orally at day 0 (0 h, 2 h, 4 h, 6 h). Oral administration of Moringa oleifera seed extract at 1000 mg/kg in combination with metformin 125 mg/kg (oral hypoglycaemic agent) produced a 60.6% ±6.1, 76.5% ±2.9 and 85.5% ±1.92 reduction in blood glucose levels in comparison to a 44.5% ±8.6, 71.4% ±3.2 and 75.8% ±6.38 reduction in blood glucose levels in metformin 125 mg/kg alone after 2 h, 4 h and 6 h respectively.
This suggests that the combination of Moringa oleifera seed extract and metformin may offer a more effective approach to managing hyperglycaemia in diabetic patients.