Clinacanthus nutans Leaves Extract Reverts Endothelial Dysfunction in Type 2 Diabetes Rats by Improving Protein Expression of eNOS

• Published in: Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity Vol. 2020; no. 2020; pp. 1 - 10
• Main Authors: Noor Azmi, Ahmad Khusairi, Rasool, Aida Hanum Ghulam, Mokhtar, Siti Safiah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2020; Hindawi; John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Hindawi Limited
• Subjects: Acanthaceae - chemistry; Acetylcholine - pharmacology; Animals; Aorta, Thoracic - drug effects; Aorta, Thoracic - pathology; Aorta, Thoracic - physiopathology; Atherosclerosis; Bioavailability; Blood Glucose - metabolism; Blood sugar; Blood vessels; Body Weight - drug effects; Calcimycin - pharmacology; Chromatography; Coronary vessels; Cytokines; Diabetes; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - blood; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - complications; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - enzymology; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - physiopathology; Diet, High-Fat; Dilatation; Endothelium; Endothelium, Vascular - drug effects; Endothelium, Vascular - enzymology; Endothelium, Vascular - physiopathology; Enzymes; Fasting - blood; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Glucose; Insulin resistance; Male; Medicine, Botanic; Medicine, Herbal; Nitric oxide; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III - metabolism; Nitroprusside - pharmacology; Phenylephrine - pharmacology; Physiology; Phytochemicals - analysis; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Leaves - chemistry; Potassium; Protein expression; Proteins; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Rodents; Sapropterin dihydrochloride; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Type 2 diabetes; Vasodilation - drug effects; Canada; Massachusetts; Malaysia; United States > US; Germany
• ISSN: 1942-0900; 1942-0994
• DOI: 10.1155/2020/7572892

Diabetes mellitus is associated with endothelial dysfunction; it causes progressive vascular damage resulting from an impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation. In the diabetes state, presence of hyperglycemia and insulin resistance predisposes to endothelial dysfunction. Clinacanthus nutans, widely used as a traditional medicine for diabetes is reported to have hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the possibility of C. nutans affecting the vascular endothelial function in diabetes remains unclear. This study was aimed at evaluating the effects of C. nutans methanolic leaves extract (CNME) on endothelial function in a type 2 diabetes (T2DM) rat model. Sixty male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups (n=12 per group): nondiabetic control, nondiabetic treated with four weeks of CNME (500 mg/kg/daily), untreated diabetic rats, diabetic treated with metformin (300 mg/kg/daily), and diabetic treated with CNME (500 mg/kg/daily). T2DM was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of low-dose streptozotocin (STZ) to rats fed with high-fat diet (HFD). Endothelial-dependent and endothelial-independent relaxations and contractions of the thoracic aorta were determined using the organ bath. Aortic endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression was determined using Western blotting. Endothelial-dependent relaxation was reduced in diabetic rats. Both diabetic groups treated with CNME or metformin significantly improved the impairment in endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation; this was associated with increased expression of aortic eNOS protein. CNME- and metformin-treated groups also reduced aortic endothelium-dependent and aortic endothelium-independent contractions in diabetics. Both of these diabetic-treated groups also reduced blood glucose levels and increased body weight compared to the untreated diabetic group. In conclusion, C. nutans improves endothelial-dependent vasodilatation and reduces endothelial-dependent contraction, thus ameliorating endothelial dysfunction in diabetic rats. This may occur due to its effect on increasing eNOS protein expression.