Oluwatosin Okunlola, Folasade Omobolanle Ajao, Kehinde Samuel Olaniyi, Noheem Olaoluwa Kalejaiye, Marcus Olaoye Iyedupe
Journal of Clinical Trials and Experimental Investigations - 2025;4(3):77-88
Objective: Discovering a novel compound from medicinal plants as alternative medicine to manage diabetes and related complications is a global issue. This study investigated the renoprotective effects of propionic acid in high-fat diet (HFD)/streptozotocin (STZ)-induced rat model. Materials and methods: Fifty male mature rats (200 - 220 g) were used. Rats were fed with HFD for 8 weeks. A repeated dose of freshly prepared STZ (30 mg/kgb.wt) was injected intraperitoneally to induce diabetes. The rats were grouped into 5 groups (n=10). Group I: control; Group II: control + 60 mg/kgb.wt propionic acid; Group III: diabetic control; Group IV: diabetic + 60 mg/kgb.wt propionic acid; Group V: diabetic + 200 mg/kgb.wt metformin. The rats were anaesthetized and sacrificed after 21 days of treatment. Serum retrieved from the blood samples and supernatant plasma obtained from kidney homogenates after centrifugation were used for biochemical assay. Results: Insulin, fasting blood glucose (FBG), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), kidney potassium, creatinine, urea, uric acid, triglycerides, total-cholesterol (TC), low-density-lipoprotein (LDL-C), malondialdehyde, tumor-necrosis-factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), transformation-growth-factor-beta (TGF-beta), interleukin-6 (IL-6),and caspase-3 significantly (p<0.001) increased in diabetic rats. Body weight, high-density-lipoprotein (HDL-C), chloride bicarbonate, sodium, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, reduced glutathione (GSH) and Bcl-2 decreased significantly. Propionic acid administration reduced insulin, FBG, HbA1c, kidney biomarkers, triglycerides, TC, LDL-C, malondialdehyde and inflammatory markers. Body weight, antioxidant activity, HDL-C and Bcl-2 levels were improved. Conclusion: Propionic acid attenuated kidney oxidative stress and inflammation. Therefore, propionic acid could be used to prevent renal damage and improve renal function in diabetes.
