Abstract
One of the strategies used to alleviate metabolic disorders in diabetes is nutritional intervention. In order to achieve this goal, plant materials that contain compounds with high antioxidant potential, exhibit digestive enzyme inhibiting activity, or contain substances that improve insulin sensitivity are selected. The importance of legumes in the regulation of carbohydrate metabolism is currently the subject of many studies. Due to high α-glucosidase activity and phenolic profile, Adzuki bean (AB) may be considered as a plant with hypoglycemic and antioxidant properties. Thus, the aim of the study was to assess the effect of AB extract on antioxidant and inflammatory indices in diabetic rats. The experiment was conducted on male Wistar rats. The rats were divided into four groups; one was fed with the AIN-93M diet, while the other three were induced with diabetes by feeding them a high-fat diet for 4 weeks followed by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (35 mg/kg b.w. in citrate buffer). The rats of the control group received citrate buffer alone. After confirmation of hyperglycemia, the rats were divided into three groups: diabetic control, diabetic fed diets supplemented with AB ethanolic extract with a lower dose (0.5%), and diabetic supplemented with AB extract with a higher dose (1%). The feeding period was 4 weeks. In serum, the glucose, CRP, TAS, SOD, CAT, and TBARS were determined. The inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6) were measured in the liver and adipose tissue. In this study, induction of diabetes did not reveal strong inflammation in serum measured by serum CRP concentration (p > 0.05). However, in the liver, TNF-α and IL-6 increased, and a higher dose of AB extract normalized these indices. The serum TAS and activity of antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, and ceruloplasmin) were unchanged in all experimental groups. On the other hand, CAT and SOD activity in the liver of diabetic rats decreased, and higher concentrations of AB extract normalized these values to a level comparable to the control group. In conclusion, the higher AB dose supplementation improved antioxidant potential and decreased inflammation in the liver of diabetic rats.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, E.K. and Z.K.; methodology E.K., H.S., D.S., M.G. and B.G.; validation, E.K.; formal analysis, E.K.; investigation, E.K., H.S., D.S. and B.G.; data curation, E.K.; writing—original draft preparation, E.K.; funding acquisition, E.K. and Z.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research was funded by the statutory funding of Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics (508-86-00-0).
Institutional Review Board Statement
The experiment was conducted according to European Union (2010/63/EU) and approved by the Local Animal Care and Use Committee (6 June 2014, No. 42/2014).
Informed Consent Statement
Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement
Data are available upon request to the authors.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content. |
© 2024 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).