Background: Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae) leaves are commonly used for diabetes in Mali. This pilot clinical study aimed to evaluate its effect on post-prandial blood glucose in preparation for a larger trial. Methods: Diabetic patients and non-diabetic healthy volunteers (35 each) were asked to fast for 13 hours on three occasions. Blood glucose was measured before and after eating 100g of white bread (at 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 minutes). On their second and third study visits, they were given 1g and 2g respectively, of M. oleifera leaf powder, 30 minutes after eating the bread. The mean paired reduction in blood glucose at each time interval and the incremental area under the curve were calculated. Results: Ingestion of Moringa powder had no effect on blood glucose in non-diabetic participants, but in diabetic patients, it lowered blood glucose at 90 minutes. There was a trend towards lower incremental area under the curve when diabetic patients took 2g of Moringa. No side-effects were reported by any participant. Conclusions: Moringa oleifera leaf powder reduced post-prandial glycaemia in diabetic patients. A larger study is needed to define the optimal dose and to assess whether this translates into longer-term benefits.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional properties of Roselle seed protein isolates and its hydrolysates. Place and Duration of Study: The Roselle seeds were collected in Koutiala (Mali), in November 2018. All analysis were conducted in the Faculty of Sciences and Technics, particularly in the Laboratory of Plant and Food Biochemistry and Biotechnology from January to June 2019.   Methodology: The effect of enzymatic hydrolysis on the functional properties of Roselle seed protein (RSP) was investigated. Defatted Roselle seed flour was used to extract the protein isolates. The protein was digested for 2 hours and 3 hours using pepsin followed by pancreatin. Results: The 2 hours and 3 hours Roselle seed protein hydrolysates (RSPH2, RSPH3) compare to RSPI, exhibited a good foaming capacity of 300, 315 and 165% respectively. The water holding capacity (WHC) of the RSPI, RSPH2 and the RSPH3 were 2, 2.5 and 2.2 ml/g respectively. The oil holding capacity ranged from 5.75 to 5.32 ml/g, the emulsifying capacity of the RSPH2 was higher than that of the RSPH3 and the RSPI, 105, 97 and 82 ml/g respectively. Conclusion: The ability of pepsin and pancreatin hydrolysates to be functional is primarily due to their soluble peptide content. The samples have good functional properties. These results proposed that pepsin and pancreatin hydrolysates could be useful as whole or partial replacement of high-price materials such as egg albumen and casein.

Background: Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae) leaves are commonly used for diabetes in Mali. This pilot clinical study aimed to evaluate its effect on post-prandial blood glucose in preparation for a larger trial. Methods: Diabetic patients and non-diabetic healthy volunteers (35 each) were asked to fast for 13 hours on three occasions. Blood glucose was measured before and after eating 100g of white bread (at 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 minutes). On their second and third study visits, they were given 1g and 2g respectively, of M. oleifera leaf powder, 30 minutes after eating the bread.  The mean paired reduction in blood glucose at each time interval and the incremental area under the curve were calculated. Results: Ingestion of Moringa powder had no effect on blood glucose in non-diabetic participants, but in diabetic patients, it lowered blood glucose at 90 minutes. There was a trend towards lower incremental area under the curve when diabetic patients took 2g of Moringa. No side-effects were reported by any participant. Conclusions: Moringa oleifera leaf powder reduced post-prandial glycaemia in diabetic patients. A larger study is needed to define the optimal dose and to assess whether this translates into longer-term benefits.

Enquête ethnobotanique de trois plantes utilisées dans la prise en charge traditionnelle de l'hypertension artérielle au Mali: Balanites aegyptiaca (L.) Del., Piliostigma reticulatum (DC), Hochst et Bauhinia rufescens (L.