ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTI OXIDANT, AND VASODILATING EFFECT OF EVENING PRIMROSE OIL IN TYPE 2 DIABETIC PATIENTS

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) consider the most common diseases in modern societies. Natural products or compounds reported as useful remedies for controlling or preventing T2DM are categorized into 5 major groups namely, anti-inflammation products, AMPK activators, insulin secretion stimulators, alpha-glucosidase/ disaccharidase or amylase inhibitors and products acting with an unknown mechanism. Evening primrose oil is a substantial source of omega-6 essential fatty acids, mostly gamma-linolenic acid (GLA)). Linolenic acid (LA) forms GLA by Δ-6-desaturase enzyme. The activity of Δ-6-desaturase enzyme, which is compromised in patients with type 2 diabetes. Accordingly, this study aims to evaluate the effect of evening primrose oil in reducing the complications of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Twenty-Six Iraqi patients newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes who are either overweight or obese. Thirteen patients received metformin 500 mg tablets twice daily alone, and 13 patients received metformin 500 mg plus evening primrose oil 2 gm capsule twice daily for 3 month therapy. Serum hs-CRP, Tumor necrosis factor α, and malondialdehyde (MDA) were measured. There was a statistically significant elevation in baseline levels of serum MDA, hs-CRP, and TNF-α, and in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure in both patient groups compared to control subjects, (P<0.001). High reduction after 3 months of treatment was found in these parameters compared to pretreatment level, significantly with serum MDA, TNF-α, and in both systolic and diastolic BP in patients group receiving evening primrose oil (P<0.001). It can be concluded that early intervention with natural oil rich in gamma-linolenic acid, which possesses anti-angiogenic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant activities, with traditional hypoglycemic drugs can improve therapeutic benefits and represent a promising strategy to restrain the progression of diabetes complications.