The use of plant species as hypoglycemiant phytotherapics

Abstract

Diabetes Mellitus is a metabolic disorder that affects a large amount of global population, and it trends to increase its prevalence because of the life style of the modern world. Evaluating this situation, the Diabetes Expert Committee of the World Health Organization – WHO - considers the possibility of the use of hipoglycemiant medicinal plants as alternative therapeutic resources to treat this kind of patient. Among a number of already studied plants, this paper was focused on Cissus sicyoides, popularly know as princess-wine and herbal insulin, a tropical America native plant that is cultivated in many places in Brazil; and on Trigonella foenum graecum, popularly known as fenugreek, a plant native from India where it is largely cultivated. Both species have been researched on their hipoglycemiant effects, but a larger number of studies must be accomplished in clinical pharmacology. Active phytochemicals found in C. sicyoides are flavonoids that did not exhibit significant hipoglycemiant effect. Considreing T. foenum-graecum, trigonelline is the main hipoglycemiant phytochemical.