World is moving toward herbal remedies due to the side effects associated with the synthetic drugs utilized in the treatment of diabetes and its complications. The main objective of this study was to highlight the protective effect of Bauhinia variegata (BV) against streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic neuropathy and neurodegeneration (DNN).
Behavioral, biochemical, functional and structural biomarker assessment were done in STZ induced diabetic rats, further treated for 28 days with two dose levels of BV (200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg).
BV treated diabetic rats showed marked improvement in tail flick latency, pain threshold, locomotion and fall latency period. A significant reduction in glycosylated haemoglobin and blood glucose level was observed by BV in diabetic rats. Greater Antioxidant power of BV showed a rise in Super oxide dismutase, Catalase content and reduced oxidative stress by reducing serum nitrite and lipid peroxidation level; a significant reduction of C-reactive protein and decreased calcium (Ca++) content of tissues were observed in diabetic rats which proves antiinflammatory and protective potential of BV. Marked protection was observed in diabetic hippocampal region of brain and sciatic nerve tissues when treated by BV. Antioxidant potential of BV revealed presence of high polar compounds observed in thin layer chromatography (TLC).
Present study strongly suggest the protective effect of Bauhinia variegata in diabetic rats by improving behavioral, biochemical, structural aspects of DNN.