Exploring the anti-diabetic potential of Australian Aboriginal and Indian Ayurvedic plant extracts using cell-based assays

Abstract

<p><b>Background: </b>Plant-derived compounds have been used clinically to treat type 2 diabetes for many years as they also exert additional beneficial effects on various other disorders. The aim of the present study was to investigate the possible mechanism of anti-diabetic activity of twelve (seven Australian Aboriginal and five Indian Ayurvedic) plant extracts.</p> <p><b>Methods: </b>The ethanolic plant extracts were investigated for glucose uptake and adipogenesis in murine 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Cytotoxicity studies were also carried out against two cancerous cell lines, HeLa and A549, to investigate the potential anti-cancer activities of the extracts.</p> <p><b>Results: </b>Of the seven Australian Aboriginal plant extracts tested, only <i>Acacia kempeana</i> and <i>Santalum spicatum</i> stimulated glucose uptake in adipocytes. Among the five Indian Ayurvedic plant extracts, only <i>Curculigo orchioides</i></i> enhanced glucose uptake. With respect to adipogenesis, the Australian plants <i>Acacia tetragonophylla, Beyeria leshnaultii</i> and Euphorbia drumondii and the Indian plants <i>Pterocarpus marsupium, Andrographis paniculata</i> and <i>Curculigo orchioides</i> reduced lipid accumulation in differentiated adipocytes. Extracts of <i>Acacia kempeana</i> and <i>Acacia tetragonophylla</i> showed potent and specific activity against HeLa cells.</p> <p><b>Conclusions: </b> The findings suggest that the plant extracts exert their anti-diabetic properties by different mechanisms, including the stimulation of glucose uptake in adipocytes, inhibition of adipogenesis or both. Apart from their anti-diabetic activities, some of the extracts have potential for the development of chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of cervical cancer.</p>