Abstract
Diabetes is the most prevalent metabolic disease worldwide. Diabetes has been ranked as the fifth leading cause of global death. This study aimed to examine the antidiabetic effect of Calendula officinalis on male rats. Forty male Wistar rats weighing 200 +/- 10g were distributed into four equal groups (n=10). Group (1) was kept as control negative, while groups 2,3 and 4 were injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) with streptozotocin (STZ) to induce diabetes. Group (2) was kept as the control positive group, while groups (3) and (4) received Calendula officinalis in doses of two hundred and four hundred mg/kg/d; respectively. The experimental period was 6 weeks, ended by sacrificing all rat groups; blood collected for biochemical analysis and pancreas was taken for histopathological examination. The results of diabetic rats treated with Calendula officinalis showed a significant increase in insulin, GSH, SOD levels and serum inflammatory cytokines (TNF- and IL-1), while there were significant decreases in glucose levels and MDA compared to the control negative group. There was also an improvement in histopathological changes observed in the pancreases of diabetic rats. Therefore, the administration of Calendula officinalis extract had antioxidant and hypoglycemic effects on diabetic rats.