Antihyperglycemic and Antihyperlipidemic Effects of HydroalcoholicExtract of Ferulago angulta in Experimental Hyperlipidemic Rats

Metabolic disorders, and their consequences, are among the most important hygienic problems of mod-ern life.

Due to the increased global interest in natural remedies and their importance in the treatment of diseases, Ferulago angulata, as one of the oldest known medicinal plants of folk medicine, was evaluated its hypolipidemic and hypoglycemic effects.

A total of 147 adult male rats were randomly divided into seven groups, each with three replicates (n=7): control group, untreated hyperlipidemia group, three treated hyperlipidemia groups, treated with 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg of the F. angulata hydroalcoholic extract (FAHE), two hyperlipidemia groups treated with atorvastatin (10 mg/kg), and metfor-min (500 mg/kg). After 21 days, serum glucose and total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), and the ratios of LDL/HDL and TC/LDL, were measured.

In all hyperlipidemia groups treated with different doses of FAHE, glucose, TG, TC, LDL-C, and LDL/HDL ratios were significantly reduced, while significant increases in HDL-C and cholesterol/LDL ratios were observed com-pared to the untreated hyperlipidemia group; however, a significant reduction of VLDL was only observed at the dose of 500 mg/kg FAHE. Hypolipidemic and hypoglycemic effects of FAHE at 250 and 500 mg/kg doses were comparable to atorvastatin and metformin.

These results indicated the hypolipidemic and hypoglycemic effects of FAHE, which may be due to the high phenolic, flavonoids, and trace element contents, providing powerful antioxidant potential and affecting the en-zymatic pathways of lipid and glucose synthesis and metabolism