Antidiabetic, Antihyperlipidemic Activities of Gelatin Nanoparticles Encapsulated With <i>Murraya koenigii</i> (L.) Spreng. in High Fat Diet–Fed Streptozotocin‐Induced Wistar Rats

Nanoencapsulation of herbal extracts is an emerging strategy in developing novel therapeutic agents to combat Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The present study aimed to investigate the sub-acute antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic effects of aqueous ethanol 70% v/v extract of Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng. (MAE) encapsulated gelatin nanoparticles (MGNP) using a high fat diet fed streptozotocin-induced Wistar rats with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. MGNP (10, 20, and 60 mg kg^-1) and free MAE (85, 255, and 765 mg kg^-1) were orally administered to rats for 28 days, biochemical and histopathological investigations were conducted. Rats treated with MGNP (therapeutic dose:20 mg kg^-1) showed significant (p < 0.05) decrease in glycated hemoglobin (by 61.7%, 16.3%), homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) of insulin resistance (by 64.7%, 49.0%), triglyceride (by 49.2%, 10.4%), very low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (by 49.4%, 10.4%), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (by 75.9%, 41.5%), malondialdehyde (by 67.5%, 27.5%), and increased HOMA of β-cell function (by 949.5%, 449.7%), leptin (by 283.3%, 177.0%), catalase (by 429.8%, 102.9%), and total antioxidant capacity (by 688.0%, 13.4%) compared to diabetic control rats and MAE, respectively, indicating profound antihyperglycemic, antihyperlipidemic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. The biochemical findings were corroborated by ameliorating histopathological abnormalities in the pancreas, proving that MGNP is a novel drug lead in pharmaceutical applications.