Abstract
BACKGROUND: Although the leaves of Otostegia integrifolia traditionally claimed in Ethiopian folklore medicine for management of diabetes mellitus, it has not been validated. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the antidiabetic activity of Otostegia integrifolia in rodents. METHODS: Male rats or mice were randomly divided into five groups for diabetic, hypoglycemic and glucose tolerance test (OGTT) studies. In all models, group I received Tween 80, 2% v/v, Group II (GL5) treated with 5 mg/kg of glibenclamide and the remaining group: III, IV and V were given the plant extract at doses of 100 mg/kg 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg respectively. Blood glucose levels (BGL) were measured by collecting blood samples at different time points. Data was analyzed using one way ANOVA followed by Dunnet's post hoc test to carry out between and within group comparisons. P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. RESULTS: Inter-group analysis revealed that O. integrifolia at 100 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg reduced the 4(th) hour fasting blood BGL significantly (p < 0.001) compared to the control group. The intra-group analysis result has shown O. integrifolia at 200 mg/kg produced a significant (p < 0.05) reduction in BGL at the 1(st), 2(nd), 3rd and 4th hours of post treatment compared to their respective initial levels. Moreover, in the hypoglycemic and OGTT models, O. integrifolia extract at 200 mg/kg, has shown a significant reduction in blood glucose levels compared to negative controls and across all time points. CONCLUSION: The crude extract of O. integrifolia has shown significant antidiabetic, hypoglyceamic and oral glucose tolerating effects. The effective dose of the extract was found to be 200 mg/kg in time dependent manner.