ArticleBMC complementary medicine and therapies2022
Metformin and Gegen Qinlian Decoction boost islet α-cell proliferation of the STZ induced diabetic rats.
Article in BMC complementary medicine and therapies, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Evidence of traditional Chinese medicine for treating type 2 diabetes mellitus: from molecular mechanisms to clinical efficacy.Pharmaceutical biology · 2024Pooled it
- Metformin and insulin exacerbate one-carbon metabolism deficits in pregnant growth restricted rats and impacts the placenta, fetal liver and pancreas.The Journal of physiology · 2025Article
- Article
- Intestinal flora: a potential pathogenesis mechanism and treatment strategy for type 1 diabetes mellitus.Gut microbesReview
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3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe traditional Chinese medicine Gegen Qinlian Decoction (GQD), as well as metformin, had been reported with anti-diabetic effects in clinical practice.
objectiveTo verify whether these two medicines effectively ameliorate hyperglycemia caused by deficiency of islet β-cell mass which occurs in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
methodsSD rats were injected with a single dose of STZ (55 mg/kg) to induce β-cell destruction. The rats were then divided into control, diabetes, GQD and metformin group. GQD and metformin groups were administered with GQD extract or metformin for 6 weeks. The islet α-cell or β-cell mass changes were tested by immunohistochemical and immunofluorescent staining. The potential targets and mechanisms of GQD and metformin on cell proliferation were tested using in silico network pharmacology. Real-time PCR was performed to test the expression of islet cells related genes and targets related genes.
resultsBoth GQD and metformin did not significantly reduce the FBG level caused by β-cell mass reduction, but alleviated liver and pancreas histopathology. Both GQD and metformin did not change the insulin positive cell mass but increased α-cell proliferation of the diabetic rats. Gene expression analysis showed that GQD and metformin significantly increased the targets gene cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (Cdk4) and insulin receptor substrate (Irs1) level.
conclusionThis research indicates that GQD and metformin significantly increased the α-cell proliferation of β-cell deficiency induced diabetic rats by restoring Cdk4 and Irs1 gene expression.
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