Antioxidant Activity of Gymnema sylvestre Leaf Extract and Glibenclamide in Alloxan Treated Albino Rats

Diabetes represents a state of increased oxidative stress, which is mainly based on evidence of increased lipid peroxidation or indirect evidence of reduced antioxidant enzymes in animal models.The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential activity of the aqueous extract of Gymnema sylvestre leaf extract at a dose of 300 mg/kg b wt on lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzymes in control and alloxan-induced diabetic rats, and to compare it with the standard hypoglycemic drug, glibenclamide (3 mg/kg b wt).Gymnema sylvestre (GS) and glibenclamide (GBC) were administered orally for 21 days, and the effects on lipid peroxidation markers, including thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and antioxidant enzymes such as glutathione-S-transferase (GST), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) activities in the blood and kidney were studied.The experimental findings suggested that Gymnema sylvestre considerably recovered the lipid peroxidation (TBARS) indicators to normal and increased antioxidant levels in the blood and kidney, thus confirming that the aqueous extract of Gymnema sylvestre leaves helps protect against oxidative stress and its complications.Reference drugs also showed a significant increase in the levels of GST, GPx, SOD, and CAT and decreased lipid peroxidation in the blood and kidney.GBC was found to be more effective in reducing oxidative stress.