Role of Irbesartan and Curcumin in type 2 Diabetes mellitus

Diabetes is a silent epidemic affecting huge portion of population all over the world.Prolonged use of oral antidiabetic drugs elicits various side effects & that of insulin leads to resistance.So alternate treatment is needed. The present study, performed on wistar rats, reveals that Irbesartan, primarily an antihypertensive drug, & Curcumin, a polyphenol present in frequently used household Indian herb Haldi/turmeric (Curcuma longa), possess the antihyperglycemic & antihyperlipidemic actions, alone and in combination, without causing adverse effects. So far we have very scanty number of studies. These effects have also been compared with those of standard allopathic drugs. Descriptions of physiology of glucose metabolism, pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus, Insulin resistance, general properties and proposed mechanisms of antihyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic action of Irbesartan & Curcumin, fasting plasma glucose level measurement using Glucose oxidase method, lipid profile measurement using automatic analyzer have also been added which should be useful for the students and readers from the corresponding discipline.