Effect of Supplementation of Natural Honey on Serum Albumin and Total Protein of Alloxan Induced Diabetic Wister Rats

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder that is associated with abnormalities in most biochemical markers including depletion of proteins as a result of its excessive catabolism and/or diminished synthesis. The present study is aimed at determining the changes that may occur in the levels of albumin and total proteins following 8-week supplementation of honey in diabetic rats. Methods: 48 male Wister rats weighing 200-250 g separated into 6 groups of 8 rats each were used for the experiment; Groups 1 and 3 are non-diabetic and diabetic controls respectively. Group 2 is non-diabetic test group which received 10 ml/kg/day of 50% honey whereas groups 4, 5 and 6 are diabetic test groups which received 10 ml/kg/day of 10%, 30% and 50% honey respectively. Diabetes was induced in groups 3 to 6 by intraperitoneally injecting 2% alloxan solution as 200 mg/kg and confirmed with a blood sugar ≥ 12.0 mmol/l. The animals were sacrificed at the end of 8 weeks and blood samples collected to measure the levels of albumin and total protein. Results: The results showed that 8-week honey supplementation significantly increased the serum concentrations of albumin in both diabetic and non-diabetic rats. There was however, no significant change in the levels of total protein in both diabetic and non-diabetic rats. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that honey may have a possible anti-catabolic effect on albumin and may also protect the hepatocytes from the oxidative stress in diabetes with resultant improved synthesis of albumin.