The therapeutic potential of three traditional Indian herbal medicines in the treatment of Alzheimer’s and Type 2 diabetes

Researchers at Yogi Vemana University in India aimed to develop natural powerful agents for dual therapy of both Alzheimer’s disease and Type 2 diabetes. In their study, which was published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, they found that three traditional Indian herbal medicines possess multifunctional abilities to treat both Alzheimer’s and Type 2 diabetes.

• Alzheimer’s disease and Type 2 diabetes tend to develop at the same time in aged people as Type 2 diabetes is a primary risk factor for Alzheimer’s.
• The researchers assessed the phytochemicals and effects of three Indian plants Buchanania axillaris, Hemidesmus indicus, and Rhus mysorensis (known in India as Sara pappu, Suganda pala, and Sitha Sundari, respectively) on Alzheimer’s disease and Type 2 diabetes.
• Based on the analyses, all the methanolic extracts of the three Indian herbal plants exhibited inhibitory activities against acetylcholinesterase, butyrylcholinesterase, alpha-glucosidase, and beta-glucosidase enzymes.
• The inhibition of both acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase, regulatory and co-regulator enzymes, resulted in improvements in memory and cognitive dysfunction.
• In addition, the suppression of alpha-glucosidase and beta-glucosidase enzymes slowed down the digestion of carbohydrates. These effects suggested that the Indian herbal extracts are effective for managing carbohydrate metabolic disorders like Type 2 diabetes.
• These results indicated that B. axillaris, H. indicus, and R. mysorensis possess powerful antidiabetic properties.
• The Indian herbal extracts were also found to have the ability to prevent the potential damage by reactive oxygen species.
• The extracts also demonstrated significant cell viability and powerful neuroprotective effects against oxidative stress-induced cell death in neuronal cells.

The findings of the study concluded that the Indian herbal plants B. axillaris, H. indicus, and R. mysorensis are multifunctional therapeutic remedies for dual therapy of Type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease.

Read the full text of the study at this link.

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Journal Reference:

Penumala M, Zinka RB, Shaik JB, Mallepalli SKR, Vadde R, Amooru DG. PHYTOCHEMICAL PROFILING AND IN VITRO SCREENING FOR ANTICHOLINESTERASE, ANTIOXIDANT, ANTIGLUCOSIDASE AND NEUROPROTECTIVE EFFECT OF THREE TRADITIONAL MEDICINAL PLANTS FOR ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND DIABETES MELLITUS DUAL THERAPY. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2 March 2018; 18(77). DOI: 10.1186/s12906-018-2140-x