Crude Ethanol Extract of Diospyros mespiliformis Hochst. ex A. DC. Ebenaceae Leaf and Its Fractions Ameliorate Hyperglycemia and Hyperlipidemia in Alloxan-induced Diabetic Rats

This study investigated the antidiabetic activity of the crude ethanol extract of Diospyros mespiliformis (DM) and its ethyl acetate (EEF) and aqueous (AQF) fractions on alloxan-induced diabetic rats. The result indicated a significant (p < 0.05) decrease and improvement in fasting blood glucose (FBG) level and body weight, respectively. The treatment groups exhibited a significantly (p < 0.05) decreased aspartate aminotransferase (AST) level (100-117 IU/L) and decreased gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) level in the EEF (4.80 ± 1.02 IU/L) and AQF (5.80 ± 0.80 IU/L) groups only. All the extract-treated groups exhibited a significant increase (p < 0.05) in urea and creatinine levels than the naïve control group (6.94 ± 0.20 mM/L). Moreover, the Na+ remained significantly (p > 0.05) unchanged while the K+ level was significantly (p < 0.05) increased for the treatment groups. The HCO3- of the treated groups increased significantly (p < 0.05) except for the AQF (21.60 ± 1.63 mM/L) group. The total cholesterol and triglyceride levels decreased significantly (p < 0.05) for the treatment groups while the high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) levels remained unchanged but significantly higher than the metformin group. DM possesses significant hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic activity lowering hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia, and improving body weight and diabetic markers.