Yi-Qi-Zeng-Min-Tang ameliorates insulin resistance in Type 2 diabetic rats

The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is dramatically increasing throughout the world. Insulin resistance is a hallmark of type 2 diabetes, and it most often precedes the onset of hyperglycemia and predicts development of type 2 diabetes. At present, thiazolidinediones (TZD), the agonists of the peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor γ, are the main agents to improve insulin sensitivity in the liver, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle, thus improving glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes. Despite the efficacy, some deleterious side effects of TZDs, including rosiglitazone and pioglitazone, have been noted, such as increasing body weight and aggravating heart failure through fluid retention. Therefore, development of new agents may be helpful in the treatment of type 2 diabetic patients with insulin resistance.

A research article published on February 28, 2011 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team led by Professor Wen-Jian Wang from Institute of Chinese Integrative Medicine, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University investigated the effect of the Chinese herbal decoction, Yi-Qi-Zeng-Min-Tang (YQZMT), on insulin resistance in type 2 diabetic rats.

The results of this study indicated that YQZMT has beneficial effect in insulin resistance, glycaemic control, dyslipidemia, free fatty acids and adipocytokines, and does not cause any increase in body weight in high-fat diet and low-dose streptozotocin induced type 2 diabetic rats.

The findings demonstrate that YQZMT displays the insulin sensitization characteristic of rosiglitazone, but unlike rosiglitazone, does not cause any increase in body weight. Administration of YQZMT may be a suitable adjunct for the treatment of insulin resistance patients. Further studies will be required to identify the ingredients and chemicals in YQZMT responsible for the beneficial effects observed in the present study.

Reference: Zhang Z, Xue HL, Liu Y, Wang WJ. Yi-Qi-Zeng-Min-Tang, a Chinese Herbal Decoction, ameliorates insulin resistance in high-fat diet and low-dose streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic rats. World J Gastroenterol 2011; 17(8): 987-995

http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v17/i8/987.htm

Correspondence to: Wen-Jian Wang, MD, Professor, Institute of Chinese Integrative Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, No. 12 Wulumuqi Zhong Road, Shanghai 200040, China. wj6518@163.com

Telephone: +86-21-52888225 Fax: +86-21-62480691

World Journal of Gastroenterology (WJG), a leading international journal in gastroenterology and hepatology, has established a reputation for publishing first class research on esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, viral hepatitis, colorectal cancer, and H. pylori infection and provides a forum for both clinicians and scientists. WJG has been indexed and abstracted in Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, Science Citation Index Expanded (also known as SciSearch) and Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition, Index Medicus, MEDLINE and PubMed, Chemical Abstracts, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Abstracts Journals, Nature Clinical Practice Gastroenterology and Hepatology, CAB Abstracts and Global Health. ISI JCR 2009 IF: 2.092. WJG is a weekly journal published by WJG Press. The publication dates are the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th day of every month. WJG is supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30224801 and No. 30424812, and was founded with the name of China National Journal of New Gastroenterology on October 1, 1995, and renamed WJG on January 25, 1998.