Abstract
An investigation was made of the effect of Momordica charantia fruit juice on the distribution and number of α, β and δ cells in the pancreas of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats using immunohistochemical
methods. The results indicated that there was a significant (Student's t-test, P<0.004) increase in the number of β cells in M. charantia-treated animals when compared with untreated diabetics, however, their number was
still significantly less than that obtained for normal rats. There was also a significant
(P<0.006) increase in the number of δ cells in STZ-diabetic rats compared to non-diabetic rats. This increase in the number
of δ cells was not affected by M. charantia treatment. The number of α cells did not change significantly in M. charantia-treated rats when compared with untreated diabetic rats. Our results suggest that
oral feeding of M. charantia fruit juice may have a role in the renewal of β cells in STZ-diabetic rats or alternately may permit the recovery of partially destroyed
β cells.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
February 11,
1998
Identification
Copyright
© 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
