Co-administeration of Ethanolic Leaf Extract of Moringa oleifera and Metformin Improves Glucose, Lipid and Protein Profiles of Diabetic Wistar rats

Herbs are often co-administered with orthodox drugs, raising the potential for herb-drug interactions. This study investigated the pharmacological interaction between ethanol extract of Moringa oleifera (MOE) leaves and metformin co-administered to diabetic Wistar rats. Diabetes was induced in rats by administration of 150 mg alloxan/kg body weight intraperitoneally. A dose-response study for MOE at doses of 100-2000 mg/kg body wt. was carried out. A plot of percentage glycaemic reduction at 4h post-treatment versus log dose was used to estimate the median effective dose (ED50). Nine (9) groups of rats were used for the interaction study. Groups I and II served as normoglycaemic and diabetic controls respectively and received 1ml Normal saline. Diabetic Groups III-V received 375, 750 and 1500 mg/kg MOE respectively. Groups VI-VIII also diabetic received the same doses of MOE respectively but co-administered with a fixed dose of metformin (150 mg/kg). Group IX received metformin (150 mg/kg) alone. Fasting blood sugar (FBS) was monitored weekly and blood samples collected on day 28 for protein and lipid profile assay. The MOE/metformin co-administered groups showed greater antihyperglycaemic activity (p