Abstract

EVALUATION OF METHANOLIC NIGELLA SATIVA L SEED EXTRACT ON BLOOD GLUCOSE LEVELS IN NORMAL AND ALLOXAN-INDUCED DIABETIC MICE

Imtiyaz Ahmad Wani* and Jagrati Tripathi

Abstract

Nigella sativa, a member of Ranunculacae family is an annual, herbaceous, capsulated, dicotyledon medicinal plant cultivated for its seeds and is categorized as an edible medicinal part. Nigella sativa has inflated capsule composed of 3-7 united follicles, each containing numerous black trigonal seeds (Prain (2008), Mozzafari (2000).The seeds are frequently used for centuries and have kept its popularity for historical, cultural and religious reasons to treat various human ailments (Salem, 2005). The notable potential for cultivation, propagation and production of Nigella sativa has been reported in Asia, Africa and Europe (Sharma et al., 2009, Iqbal et al., 2010; Rabbani et al., 2011)

Keywords: Diabetes, Nigella sativa L., antioxidant activity, Betacells, blood glucose level.