Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of African Postgraduate Studies - Department of Natural Resources

Diabetes mellitus and associated complications continue to be a major health concern. The estimated number of diabetic patients is increasing worldwide despite new medicine discoveries. It is likely to increase to over 300 million by the year 2025. According to IDF diabetes Atlas 2015, an adult with diabetes in Egypt reaches 8.1 million. Due to the side effects of synthetic anti-diabetic drugs, the search for safe and effective anti-diabetic agents continues to be an important area of research. Physalis peruviana Linn. (Family Solanaceae) commonly called 2Harankash3 in Egypt is a small tropical annual herb. It is used in ethno medicine for treating malaria, asthma and hepatitis. Zingiber officinale(family Zingiberaceae)commonly called "Zangabil" in Egypt is a 2 - 4 foot tall perennial, underground plant with narrow, bright green, grass-like leaves.It is reported to exert anti-microbial, anti-nausea, anti-pyretic analgesic, anti-inflammatory, hypoglycemic anti-ulcer, antiemetic, cardio tonic, anti-hypertensive, hypolipidemic, anti-platelet aggregation effects.We aimed to investigate possible anti-diabetic, hypo-lipidaemic and antioxidant effects of Physalis peruviana and Zingiber officinaleon experimentally alloxan-induced diabetes mellitus. Forty-nine rats were divided into 7 groups [(7 rats/group]: Normal &6 diabetics groups with different treatments; treatments: Non, Glibenclamide, dried Physalis, dried Zingiber, hysalis p. ethanolic extract, Zingiberaqueous extract). The experiment lasted for 6 weeks. Fasting blood serum was analyzedfor blood glucose, cholesterol, HDL-C, LDL-C and triacylglycerol levels. Also HbA1c and MDA were analyzed. Dried Physalis powder or its ethanolic extract and dried ginger or its extract groups of rats were significantly effective in lowering serum glucose, cholesterol and triacylglycerol, also increase HDL-C levels compared with the control diabetic rats which exhibit hyperglycaemia accompanied with weight loss. The present results indicate that dried Physalis powder or its ethanolic extract and dried ginger or its extract possesses hypoglycemia, hypocholesterolemic and hypolipidemic potential

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