Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) leaf extract reduces brain damage in diabetic rats

Brain damage is one of the consequences of diabetes. The main cause of this damage is the overproduction of free radicals resulted from hyperglycaemia. This study aims to address the effect of administration of strawberry leaf extract as an antioxidant agent to reduce brain damage in diabetic male rats. Five groups of rats (N = 30) were divided into control rats group, diabetic rats group, and three diabetic rat groups treated with strawberry leaf extract as 50, 100 and 200 mg/ kg body weight for 30 days, respectively. Diabetic rat brains showed significant increases in malondialdehyde (MDA), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-6 and caspase-3 and significant decreases in catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A. Plasma dopamine and melatonin levels were decreased significantly in diabetic rats. After treating the diabetic rats with the three different doses of strawberry leaf extract, the brain and plasma biochemical parameters were improved significantly. The study finally concluded that strawberry leaf extract might be used as an antioxidant, anti -inflammatory, and anti-apoptosis to improve brain damage caused by diabetes.