Preliminary phytochemical screening and anti diabetic activity of Zingiber officinale rhizomes

Abstract

Herbs are plants which are used in a number of ways including cooking, religious, rituals and medicines. In botany herbs are defined as seed producing plant with non woody stems which weather and die back to the ground after season growth. Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder of impaired carbohydrates, fat and protein metabolism. It is characterized by hyperglycaemia expressed as abnormal glucose value, which is due to insulin deficiency and/or insulin resistance which results in decrease utilization of carbohydrate and excessive glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis from amino acid by fatty acids. The literature servey exposed Zingiber officinale possesing anti-arthritic, anti-migrane, anti-thrombotic, anti-inflamatory , hypolipidaemic , hypocholesterolaemic , anti-nausea properties. Thus in the present study ,an attempt was made to investigate the various phytochemicals present in the petroleum ether and ethanol extract of the rhizomes of zinigiber officinalis and also the study has been under taken to corroborate the anti-diabetic property of ethonolic extract of Zingiber officinale in alloxan induced diabetic rats. The results thus obtained were comparable with the standard drug, glibenclamide.