PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF NORMOGLYCEMIC, ANTI-HYPERGLYCEMIC AND DYSLIPIDEMIC ACTIVITIES OF DIFFERENT EXTRACTS OF TINOSPORA CRISPA ON DIABETIC RAT.

Tinospora crispa is an indigenous medicinal plant belonging to Menispermaceae family, known localy as "akar patawali" or as "akar seruntum". Different parts of this plant are used for various therapeutic purposes for treatment of hypertension, stimulation of appetite, protection from mosquito bites and to treat ailments like jaundice, wounds, intestinal worms and skin infections, tooth and stomach aches, coughs, asthma and pleurisy. The stems were washed, dried, pulverized using Wiley Laboratory Mill apparatus and stored in dry air-tight plastic containers until use. Then, they were extracted successively with petroleum ether, chloroform, methanol and finally with water by maceration. The solvent was evaporated from each extract (using rotary evaporator), dried extract were stored at -4°C until used. Animals were randomly divided into six groups and each group having 6 animals for two sets of experiments. In the first test, healthy rats were treated orally with the plant extracts (1 g/kg) suspended in Tween 80. In the second test, the diabetic rats were fasted overnight. The test groups of 6 diabetic rats were treated orally with extracts of Tinospora crispa (1 g/kg), glibenclamide (10 mg/kg) and 10% Tween 80, (10 mL/kg), respectively. In these results, there was no significant effect on blood glucose levels in normal rats treated with different extracts of Tinospora crispa. The water extract of Tinospora crispa decreased the glucose levels in diabetic rats and has the ability to reduce lipid profile in diabetic rats as compared to control diabetic rats.