Abstract
Diabetic nephropathy is one of the most feared complications of diabetes. An important aspect in the management of diabetic nephropathy is the maintenance of optimal weight, which is difficult with conventional anti-diabetic drugs. Resveratrol, a polyphenolic compound, has been used to prevent/treat several chronic diseases including type-2 diabetes due to its strong antioxidant and other properties. This study aimed to investigate the effect of resveratrol on weight gain and some liver enzymes in hyperglycemia-induced diabetic nephropathy in male Wistar rats. Twenty-five adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 5 groups of 5 rats each: normal control, normoglycemic, diabetic untreated, diabetic treated with resveratrol and diabetic treated with lisinopril. Diabetes was induced by feeding the rats high-fat diet and 20% fructose solution as drinking water for 6 weeks followed by a single intraperitoneal streptozotocin injection (35 mg/kg). The resveratrol and lisinopril treatment lasted for 5 weeks after which the rats were humanely sacrificed. The mean body weight of the group treated with resveratrol was increased from the 8th week (180.25 ± 7.73g), when compared to the diabetic control (164.50 ± 2.02g) but markedly decreased compared to the normal control (225.25 ± 11.24g) and these findings were consistent up to the 12th week. There was a significant reduction in alanine transferase level in the group treated with resveratrol compared to the diabetic control group (24.00 ± 0.58 and 38.25± 3.07 IU/L respectively). In conclusion, Resveratrol played a modulatory role on body weight and ameliorated derangement in alanine transferase levels in diabetic nephropathy in Wistar rats.