Inhibition of Carbohydrate Digestive Enzymes by Talinum portulacifolium (Forssk) Leaf Extract

Objective - Our purpose was to determine the inhibitory effect of methanolic extract of Talinum portulacifolium (METP) left on carbohydrate digestive enzymes, and also establish its activity on glucose uptake in isolated rat hemidiaphragm.Methods – To investigate the effect of METP on carbohydrate digestive enzymes we have carried out alpha-glucosidase inhibitory assay by using mouse small intestine homogenate as alpha-glucosidase solution. Also yeast alpha-amylase inhibitory assay was performed. Effect of METP on glucose utilisation was evaluated by estimating glucose uptake in isolated rat hemidiaphragm.Results – The METP effectively inhibited alpha-glucosidase and alpha-amylase. In the alpha-amylase inhibitory assay METP (100-1000 µg/ml) showed dose dependent inhibition and standard acarbose (50 µg/ml) showed 50.33% inhibition. METP showed both sucrase and maltase inhibitory activity 86.00 %, 90.66% respectively at 500 µg/ml. The glucose uptake in the hemidiaphragm was significantly increased by METP (17.16 ± 0.20) when compared to the control group. At the same time, uptake was lower than insulin alone (64.2 ± 0.61). The total polyphenolic content of METP was measured and it was 39 µg gallic acid /100 g of fresh weight material.Conclusion – These results suggest that METP has significant inhibitory activity on carbohydrate metabolizing enzymes and increases the peripheral utilization of glucose. It may act as a potent antihyperglycemic agent.