Osama Abdulmunem K., Essam A. Makky, Arwa A. Tawfiq, Kasturi Mahendran and Normaiza Zamri
Background and Objective: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the major health and economic problem through the world. The insufficiencies and severe adversarial special effects related with conventional medicines, led to a strong-minded search for alternative natural antidiabetic agents. The study was aimed to screen the in vitro antidiabetic activity of seven plant extracts. Materials and Methods: The bioactivity of the extracts was correlated through a Gas Chromatography-Mass spectrometry (GC-MS)-based analysis, while extracts with 50% inhibition activity were reported. Results: The α-amylase inhibitory activities of the chloroform extracts of Averrhoa bilimbi, Andrographis paniculata, Eurycoma longifolia and Punica granatum exhibited more than 50% inhibition (50.55, 68.24, 82.42 and 69.73% respectively), while chloroform extracts of A. paniculata, Orthosiphon stamineus and P. granatum exhibited 90.48, 52.00 and 62.00% of α-glucosidase inhibitory effects, respectively. Only ethanolic and methanolic extracts of E. longifolia exhibited α-glucosidase inhibitory effects of 57.80 and 53.31%, respectively. A combination of the ethanolic fraction of E. longifolia with the chloroform fraction of P. granatum at a ratio of 2:1 exhibited the highest α-glucosidase inhibition rate of 148.06%, while a combination of the ethanolic fraction of E. longifolia with the chloroform fraction of O. stamineus at the same ratio exhibited α-glucosidase inhibition rate of 137.43%. A phytochemical analysis based on GC-MS revealed the presence of fatty acids, with palmitic acid recording the highest percentage (100%) in the O. stamineus extract. Conclusion: The observed α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities of these plant extracts suggested their potential usage as an alternative sources of antidiabetic agents.
Osama Abdulmunem K., Essam A. Makky, Arwa A. Tawfiq, Kasturi Mahendran and Normaiza Zamri, 2020. Evaluating the Effect of Combined Plant Extracts on α-amylase and α-glucosidase Inhibition Activity as Antidiabetic Agents. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences, 23: 287-294.