Background Glossogyne tenuifolia (GT) is a traditional herbal tea in Penghu Island, Taiwan. Its extract is traditionally been used as an antipyretic, hepatoprotective and anti-inflammatory remedy in folk medicine among local residents. The present study investigated whether GT could improve streptozotocin-induced acute liver injury of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods Male Wistar rats aged eight weeks were induced to be hyperglycemic by the subcutaneous injection of streptozotocin-nicotinamide (STZ-NA) and a combination of a high-fat diet (HFD) (N group). The animals were given GT extracts at a low dose (50 mg/kg) (L group) or a high dose (150 mg/kg) (H group) or an anti-diabetic drug (acarbose) (P group) in drinking water for 4 weeks. Results The results revealed that STZ-NA increased hepatomegaly, hepatocyte cross-sectional area, hypertrophy-related pathways (IL6/STAT3-MEK5-ERK5, NFATc3, p38 and JNK MAPK), proapoptotic molecules (cytochrome C, cleaved caspase-3), and fibrosis-related pathways (FGF-2, pERK1/2). These pathway components were then expressed at lower levels in the L and H group when compared with the N group. The liver-protective effect of GT in STZ-NA-induced diabetic rats with hyperlipidemia was through an enhancement in the activation of the compensatory PI3K-Akt and Bcl2 survival-related pathway. Conclusion The results demonstrate that the hot water extracts of GT efficiently ameliorates the STZ-NA-induced diabetes associated liver damage in rat models.

Glossogyne tenuifolia (GT) is the traditional herbal tea in Penghu Island, Taiwan. Recent research has shown that the active components in GT are potential inhibitors of α-glucosidase. The present study investigated that whether or not GT could improve the status of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Male Wistar rats aged eight weeks were induced to be hyperglycemic by subcutaneous injection of streptozotocin-nicotinamide (STZ-NA) and combination of high-fat diet (HFD). The animals were given GT extracts at the low dose or high dose, or the anti-diabetic drug (acarbose), in drinking water for 4 weeks. The results showed that hot water extracts from GT resulted in significantly decreases in fasting blood glucose at the 1 st and 2 nd weeks, fasting insulin levels at the 2 nd week, 1 hour postprandial blood glucose after the starch tolerance test on Day 23 and blood glucose levels after oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at the 60 th minute on Day 25. In addition, diabetic rats treated with GT extracts from hot water for 4 weeks displayed significantly decreased thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in the serum, liver and kidney, serum total cholesterol, fasting insulin levels and homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Overall, these results demonstrate that the hot water extracts of GT might improve the progression of diabetes and decrease oxidative stress in STZ-NA-induced diabetic rats.