Evaluation of Antidiabetic, Antihyperlipidemic Potential and Herb-Drug Interaction of Saptarangi plus Kadha and Saptarangi Tablet in Streptozotocin Induced Diabetic Rats

The study was undertaken to evaluate single herb formulation (SHF) as Saptarangi tablet (ST) and polyherbal formulations (PHF) as Saptarangi plus Kadha (SK) for diabetes and hyperlipidemia. The main objective of proposed study was to evaluate the anti-diabetic and anti-hyperlipidemic activities of ST and SK in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats, as well as their interactions with metformin (MET), in order to prove complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for diabetes treatments. The single intraperitoneal injection (i.p.) of STZ at the dose of 45mg/kg was given to induce diabetes in Wistar albino rats. At dosages of 45 mg/kg and 1.35ml/kg, ST and SK were evaluated for antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic action. It was calculated using biochemical alterations in urine, serum, liver, kidney and pancreatic tissue homogenate. The liver, kidney and pancreas tissues were examined for histological changes. MET at the dose of 100 mg/kg was administered as a reference standard. Hyperglycemia, increased serum HbA1c(glycosylated hemoglobin), increased oxidative stress, increased urine volume and frequency, increased serum lipid profile(mg/dl), decreased liver glycogen content (%), and minimal to normal histological alterations in the liver, kidney, and pancreas were all observed following STZ administration. The increased serum glucose level(mg/dl) and urine volume (ml/24hrs) were significantly lowered by ST and SK. The serum lipid profile and HbA1c levels were significantly improved by ST and SK. The amount of glycogen in the liver also increased significantly. The histological changes in liver, kidney and pancreatic tissue were recovered as close to normal due to ST and SK treatment. Without any herb-drug interactions (HDI), ST and SK showed significant antidiabetic and hypolipidemic activities. ST has significant anti-diabetic and anti-hyperlipidemic activities. These activities were improved much more in the SK group, and there was no HDI for ST/SK with MET, confirming that ST and SK have CAM potential. Furthermore, the SK+MET combination has proved to have the most promising anti-diabetic and anti-hyperlipidemic effects.