Hypoglycemic effect of abandoned Porphyra haitanensis polysaccharides in alloxan-induced diabetic mice

The therapeutic effects and preliminary mechanism of abandoned porphyra haitanensis polysaccharides (APHP) in diabetic mice induced by alloxan were studied in this paper. The intragastric administration of APHP for 21 days induced an obvious decrease (P<0.05) in blood glucose levels, compared with untreated diabetic mice. The data of total cholesterol (TC), total triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), high-density fatty acids (HDL) and activities of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, GSH-Px and GSH) indicated that APHP had beneficial effects on the improvement in the activities of antioxidant and serum lipid levels. The index of viscera and histopathological examination revealed that APHP could alleviate the damage of tissues in diabetic mice. Noteworthily, we found APHP could promote the regeneration of damaged pancreatic islets by stimulating β-cell proliferation, which was directly related to the hypoglycemic effect. Taken together, our findings suggest that APHP could be developed into potential oral hypoglycemic drug with lesser side effects.