Gynura procumbens Extract Ameliorates Metabolic Dysregulation by Preserving Glucose and Lipid Homeostasis in High Sugar Diet-fed Mice

Hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia have become strong threats to human health. Hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia increase the possibility of microvascular and macrovascular complications in type 2 diabetes. Although a lot of drugs are available to treat these disorders, the majority of medications have been noted to cause negative impacts on human health. Therefore, researchers have given much attention to medicinal plants, which are safe with a low risk of side effects as well as a low cost of treatment. Gynura procumbens (GP) is one of the important medicinal plants which has been reported to have anti-hyperglycemic activity and numerous health-promoting effects on both animals and humans. This research aimed to examine whether the ethanolic extract from GP leaves impacts the balance of glucose and lipid levels in mice fed both a normal diet (ND) and a high-sugar diet (HSD). Four different dietary paradisms were tested over a period of four-weeks: normal diet (ND), normal diet supplemented with GP administration (150mg/Kg BW), a high-sugar diet (30% sucrose), and a high-sugar diet supplemented with GP administration. Furthermore, the study quantified food and water consumption, body weight, glucose tolerance, organ weights (liver, heart and kidney), as well as the mass of white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT), along with serum lipid levels. The findings revealed that treating mice with a 150mg/kg BW dosage of GP significantly attenuate the food intake, mitigated high-sugar diet induced weight gain, and improved glucose intolerance in those on a high-sugar diet compared to the control group. When treated with GP leaves extract, liver weight significantly decreased in HSD-fed group. Moreover, GP administration diminished the increase in white adipose tissue (WAT) caused by the high-sugar diet (HSD) but did not reverse the decrease in brown adipose tissue (BAT) mass. Furthermore, the GP treated group showed a decreasing trend in TC, TAG, LDL concentration whereas an upward trend of HDL levels was observed in both normal and HSD-fed mice group. Therfore, GP extract may exert its potential effects on blood glucose homeostasis and controlling weight gain, thus countering the onset of diabetes and obesity induced by a high-sugar diet (HSD).