Cecropia obtusifolia

Journal of Ethnopharmacology 2001; 78:145-149

Hypoglycemic effect of Cecropia obtusifolia on streptozotocin diabetic rats

Adolfo Andrade-Cetto ^a, Helmut Wiedenfeld ^b

^a Departamento de Biologý´a Celular, Fac. de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Auto´noma de Me´xico (UNAM) Apartado postal 70- 359, Coyoacan, 04511, Mexico DF, Mexico ^b Pharmaceutical Institute, Uniersity of Bonn, An der Immenburg 4, D- 53121 Bonn, Germany

The hypoglycemic effects of water and butanolic extracts prepared from leaves of Cecropia obtusifolia (Cecropiaceae) were examined in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. A single oral administration of a water extract at doses of 90 and 150 mg/kg and of a butanol extract at doses of 9 and 15 mg/kg significantly (P<0.05) lowered the plasma glucose levels in diabetic rats after 3 h administration. Glibenclamide was used as reference and showed similar hypoglycemic effect to the tested extracts at a dose of 3 mg/kg. The flavone, isoorientin and 3-caffeoylquinic acid (chlorogenic acid), were isolated as the important constituents of the plant and were identified as the main constituents in both extracts, too.

Cecropia obtusifolia and Marrubium vulgare

Phytomedicine 2004; 11: 561–566

Clinical trial of Cecropia obtusifolia and Marrubium vulgare leaf extracts on blood glucose and serum lipids in type 2 diabetics

A. Herrera-Arellano^a, L. Aguilar-Santamarý´ a^a, B. Garcý´ a-Herna´ ndez^b, P. Nicasio-Torresa, J. Tortorielloa

 ^a Centro de Investigacio´n Biome´dica del Sur, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social. Xochitepec, Morelos, Me´xico ^b Hospital General Regional No. 1, ‘‘Lic. Ignacio Garcý´a Te llez’’, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social. Cuernavaca, Morelos, Me´xico

Cecropia obtusifolia and Marrubium vulgare have been widely used in Mexican traditional medicine for the control of type 2 diabetes. In order to evaluate the clinical effect produced by the aqueous extract from these species on type 2 non-controlled diabetes mellitus, a total of 43 outpatients were included. Based on the European NIDDM (policy group) criteria, only patients with poor response to the conventional treatment were selected. All patients maintained their medical treatment and also received a prepared infusion of the dry leaves of the plant treatment for 21 days . In a double-blind manner, the patients were randomly grouped as follows: 22 patients were treated with C. obtusifolia and 21 with M. vulgare. The fasting blood glucose values were reduced by 15.25% on patients treated with C. obtusifolia, while cholesterol and triglycerides were decreased by 14.62% and 42.0%,respectively (ANOVA po0:02). In the case of patients treated with M. vulgare, the plasma glucose level was reduced by 0.64% and cholesterol and triglycerides by 4.16% and 5.78%, respectively. When the results were compared between groups, signi.cant differences in glucose and cholesterol diminution were found. The obtained results showed that the infusion prepared with the leaves of C. obtusifolia (containing 2.9970.14 mg of chlorogenic acid/g of dried plant) produced bene.cial effects on carbohydrate and lipid metabolisms when it was administered as an adjunct on patients with type 2 diabetes with poor response to conventional medical treatment.

Cecropia obtusifolia (Cecropiaceae) is a species from tropical America and its leaves are used in traditional medicine for the treatment of diabetes and as an anti-inflammatory agent. In the present study, the analgesic, anti-inflammatory and central nervous system depressant effects of the aqueous extract from the leaves of C. obtusifolia were investigated in different experimental models, with the purpose of validating its ethnomedical uses. The results obtained with the extract from the leaves of C. obtusifolia reflect a low toxicity, a substantial central depressor effect and analgesic activity and significant motor incoordination and muscle relaxant activity. Concerning the analgesic activity, using the hot plate test, the extract did not produce any effect, however it showed a significant effect on the pain induced by chemical stimuli (acetic and formalin test); this suggests the peripheral analgesic effect of the extract. The extract also showed a topical and systemic anti-inflammatory effect. Thus this work could justify the popular use of C. obtusifolia in rheumatic and kidney inflammation pathologies and reveals that this plant is an interesting species.