Sericin can decrease blood glucose levels and alleviate diabetic hippocampal damage

Preliminary studies by Dr. Zhihong Chen and colleagues from Chengde Medical College have shown that sericin might improve aberrant Akt signaling, decrease heme oxygenase-1 expression in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex, and reduce the apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in diabetic rats, thus protecting the nervous system. Recently, it is reported that the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor 1 axis undergoes abnormal changes in diabetes mellitus, which aggravate the disease progression and trigger complications. To improve diabetes mellitus and its chronic complications, therefore, improvement of growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor 1 axis anomalies is one of the treatment strategies.

A new study by the research group of Dr. Chen shows that sericin can significantly decrease the blood glucose levels of the diabetic rats, and alleviate diabetic hippocampal damage through improving disorders in the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor 1. These results are published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No. 19, 2013).