The Effects of Aqueous Extract of Raphanus sativus on Blood Glucose, Triglyceride and Cholesterol in Diabetic Rats

The probability of cardiovascular diseases in diabetic patients increases due to hyperlipidemia. Raphanus sativus is a traditional plant which is used to lower plasma lipid. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of aqueous extract of Raphanus Sativus on plasma glucose, triglyceride, and cholesterol in diabetic rats. For this purpose, 30 male rats were selected, maintained in standard conditions and divided randomly into 3 groups. Streptozotocin (65 mg/kg) was given IP to induce diabetes in 14 days. The aqueous extract of Raphanus sativus was given orally to the experimental groups at doses of 800 and 1600 mg/kg once daily for 14 days by a feeding needle. At days 1, 14, 28 and 35, blood samples were taken from the tail vein of all the groups. After this period, the animals were sacrificed under deep anesthesia by ether and their pancreases were removed, fixed in 10% formaldehyde, processed with paraffin and stained with hematoxyline and eosin for histopathological examination. Results showed that, there was a significant decrease in plasma triglyceride in the 1600 mg/kg group compared with group 1 in 28 and 35 days. No significant difference was observed in blood cholesterol and glucose in all days. In conclusion , it seems that aqueous extract of Raphanus sativus can lower the plasma triglyceride, but it has no effect on the plasma glucose or cholesterol.