EVALUATION OF IN VITRO INTERFERENCE OF THE AQUEOUS EXTRACT OF LIPPIA SIDOIDES CHAM. ON PLASMA GLYCEMIA DETERMINATION

Abstract

The use of medicinal plants is a very ancient practice in different cultures worldwide. However, the consumption of medicinal plants can interfere as in metabolic processes (in vivo), as in analytical methods (in vitro), producing false positive results, by suggesting or masking pathological processes. Lippia sidoides, popularly known as rosemary pepper, is a plant with antiseptic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and larvicidal properties, occurring in the Brazilian Northeast and the semi-arid region of Northern Minas Gerais. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate whether aqueous extracts of L. sidoides by infusion (EALSI) and decoction (EALSD) were able to interfere with the enzymatic assay for quantification of blood glucose. Aliquots of the extracts (0.1, 1 and 10 mg/dL) were added to the biological samples (pool of fluoridated plasma), and glucose levels were quantified by enzymatic colorimetric assay (Trinder Reaction) after 1 hour. Phytochemical prospecting was able to identify the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, flavonols, flavanones, xanthones, tannins, steroids and triterpenoids in both extracts. Regarding the possible interference
that these extracts could cause in the determination of glycemia, only in the concentration of 10 mg/dL of extracts a significant increase in glucose level to 321.5 ± 10.0 mg/dL (EALSI) and 304.3 ± 9,3 mg/dL (EALSD) were observed when compared to control (85.4 ± 3.6 mg/dL, one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s test, p < 0.05). Finally, further studies are needed to elucidate which substances are responsible for this interference and the mechanism of action against biochemical tests performed routinely in a clinical laboratory.