Therapeutic effects of soy isoflavones on α-amylase activity, insulin deficiency, liver–kidney function and metabolic disorders in diabetic rats

Abstract

Natural estrogens have demonstrated a wide variety of biological activities, which makes them a good candidate for the treatment of diabetes. In vitro, this study evidenced that isoflavones enhanced insulin secretion and inhibited α-amylase activity. In vivo, the findings indicated that soy isoflavones stimulated insulin secretion, increased the hepatic glycogen content and suppressed blood glucose level. The soy isoflavones were also protected hepatic-kidney functions showed by the significant increase in superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase activities and the decrease in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, total bilirubin, creatinine and transaminases content. Moreover, soy isoflavones induced a decrease in LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides and an increase in HDL-cholesterol in plasma and liver. Overall, the findings of the current study indicate that soy isoflavones exhibit attractive properties and can, therefore, be considered a promising candidate for future application as alternative therapeutic agents, particularly in the development of anti-diabetic and hypolipidaemic drugs.

Keywords:

• diabetes
• phytoestrogens
• liver
• kidney
• metabolic disorders
• insulin

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Tunisian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Technology and the Tunisian Ministry of Public Heath. The authors would like to express their gratitude to Prof. Hafedh Bejaoui from the English Department at the Sfax Faculty of Science for his careful editing and proofreading of this article.