The Role of Plant-Derived Compounds in Managing Diabetes Mellitus: A Review of Literature from 2014 To 2019

Abstract

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) represents a global health problem char-acterized by hyperglycemia due to insufficient insulin secretion or failure of insulin activ-ity. There is an imperative need for the discovery of alternative therapeutic agents that overcome the drawbacks of the current synthetic antidiabetic drugs. Objectives: This review critically summarizes the reports on the known and novel natural compounds, including alkaloids, flavonoids, and saponins with a potent antidiabetic activity that were recently published from 2014 to 2019. We discussed the underlying mechanisms of action that put these compounds in the category of effective antidiabetic candi-dates. Methods: Information was obtained from Google Scholar, Scirus, PubMed, and Science Direct. Discussion and Conclusion: The reported natural compounds showed promising antidia-betic activity through different mechanisms such as the inhibition of α-amylase, α-glu-cosidase, insulin-sensitizing effect, direct action on protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PT-P1B), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), GLUT4 expression, insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) and glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) as well as dipep-tidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) enzyme. Some compounds inhibited the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Other compounds prevented the risk of diabetic complications such as cardiovascular diseases, retinopathy, and nephropathy. This review provides a critical overview of the most recent discoveries of antidiabetic agents from natural sources. This overview could help researchers to focus on the most promi-nent candidates aiming to develop new drug leads.