Asian Journal of Advances in Medical Science

Hyperglycemia as a life threatening disease causes motor impairments which has been ignored by researchers and clinicians. The study investigated the antidiabetic potential of Irvingia gabonensis (IG) on diabetic induced motor disorder in albino rats. Thirty rats were assigned into 6 groups of 5 rats each. Diabetes was induced by a single intra-peritoneal injection of 60 mg/kg of Streptozotocin (STZ) and confirmed after 72 hours. Blood glucose was checked at interval of 5 days for sustained hyperglycemia. Groups C, D and E were treated with100, 200 and 300 mg/kg of IG while Group F received 500 mg/kg of metformin. Motor activities were tested using string method to ascertain the role of IG on motor impairment in diabetic rats. The supernatants of homogenates were used to assay for lipid profiles namely TChol, Trig, HDL and LDL. The result showed significant decrease in TChol, LDL, triglyceride and HDL across the treated groups compared to group B (P≤0.05). Grip strength significantly decreased in group B while the extract significantly increased the grip strength in Groups C, D and E (Table 2). Limb impairment was significantly reduced in group B compared to A and increased in groups C, D and E (P≤0.05). Microscopically, group B showed structural alterations in the cerebellum with structural improvement in treated groups C, D, and E compared to group B. In conclusion, Ig have the potential to improve grip strength and limb impairment which may be useful in addressing motor complications arising from diabetes.