Preliminary studies on the inorganic constituents of some indigenous hypoglycaemic herbs on oral glucose tolerance test

Medicinal herbs used in indigenous medicines in crude forms for the managem ent of diabetes mellitus, contain both the organic and inorganic constituen ts. It is known that certain inorganic mineral elements (potassium, zinc, c alcium, traces of chromium, etc.) play an important role in the maintenance of normal glucose-tolerance and in the release of insulin from beta cells of islets of Langerhans. In the present study, 30 hypoglycaemic herbs were selected from indigenous folk medicines, Ayurvedic, Unani and Siddha system s of medicines. Special emphasis was given to their inorganic parts by care fully preparing ash (which contains mainly mineral elements) of the specifi c parts of the herbal samples under study. Next, the single dose effect on the oral glucose tolerance test (GTT) was studied using previously fasted a lbino rats. Similar effects were also compared with their organic parts of the concerned herbal samples in the form of 95% ethanolic extracts. In cert ain inorganic samples, more pronounced action (as glucose tolerance factor) were noticed than their corresponding organic parts. (C) 1999 Elsevier Sci ence Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.