Hypoglycaemic effect of Thymelaea hirsuta in normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

The present study has investigated the effect of oral administration of the aqueous extract of Thymelaea hirsuta (T. hirsuta) on blood glucose levels in normal, glucose-hyperglycemic and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. In normal rats, single oral administration of T. hirsuta lowered blood glucose levels significantly. It omitted significantly reduced the fasting glucose level in rats with oral glucose (2 g/kg) induced hyperglycemia. In STZ-induced diabetic rats, single oral administration of T. hirsuta also produced a significant decrease of blood glucose levels. The aqueous extract of T. hirsuta possesses both hypoglycaemic and antidiabetic effects in normoglycaemic and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. This may indicate the ethnopharmacological reason of the use of T. hirsuta in traditional medicine for treating diabetes.