BACKGROUND: Solanum nigrum fruit is traditionally used in Asia to manage, control, and treat diabetes but there is no scientific evidence of the efficacy of Solanum nigrum fruit in treatment of diabetes. We designed this study to investigate the effect of the administration of oral doses of aqueous extract from Solanum nigrum fruit on plasma glucose, lipid profiles, and the sensitivity of the vascular mesenteric bed to Phenylephrine in diabetic and non-diabetic rats.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Animals were divided into 5 groups (n=10): 2 groups served as non-diabetic controls (NDC), and the other groups had diabetes induced with a single injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Solanum nigrum-treated chronic diabetic (CD-SNE) and Solanum nigrum-treated controls (ND-SNE) received 1g/l of Solanum nigrum added to drinking water for 8 weeks. The mesenteric vascular beds were prepared using the McGregor method.

RESULTS: Administration of Solanum nigrum caused Ca/Mg ratio, plasma glucose, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), total cholesterol, and triglyceride concentrations to return to normal levels, and was shown to decrease alteration in vascular reactivity to vasoconstrictor agents.

CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the hypothesis that Solanum nigrum could play a role in the management of diabetes and the prevention of vascular complications in STZ-induced diabetic rats.

Keywords: Phenylephrine - pharmacology, Perfusion, Phytotherapy, Mesentery - drug effects, Magnesium - blood, Lipids - blood, Glucose Tolerance Test, Fruit - chemistry, Dose-Response Relationship, Drug, Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental - drug therapy, Calcium - blood, Blood Glucose - metabolism, Plant Extracts - therapeutic use, Rats, Wistar, Solanum nigrum - chemistry