Phytochemicals from Zingiber capitatum rhizome as potential α-glucosidase, α-amylase, and glycogen phosphorylase inhibitors for the management of Type-II diabetes mellitus: Inferences from in vitro, in vivo and in-silico investigations

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is known to be one of the most challenging public health issues of the 21st century. The unwanted side effects associated with conventional synthetic antidiabetic medications have compelled the quest for natural antidiabetic drugs. Therefore, in this study, in vitro, in vivo, and in silico antidiabetic effects of Zingiber capitatum methanol extract (ZcME) were evaluated. ZcME exhibited potent inhibitory activity against α-glucosidase as evidenced by an IC50 value of 0.45 mg/ml compared to standard voglibose (IC50 = 0.31 mg/ml). The administration of ZcME at 400 mg/kg significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the fasting blood glucose level compared to the diabetic control group after 20 days of treatment. ZcME decreased blood glucose levels 25.80% on day 1, 45.58% on day 10, and up to 59.17% on day 20 when given at 400 mg/kg BW. Furthermore, GC–MS examination of the plant extracts revealed the presence of sterols, aliphatic acids, aromatics, and esters. In silico study affirm the experimental findings, where the identified compounds showed strong binding affinities against α-glucosidase (7.9 kcal/mol), α-amylase (9.7 kcal/mol), and glycogen phosphorylase enzymes (7.7 kcal/mol), highlighting the antidiabetic potential of ZcME.