Antihyperglycemic activity of naphthylchalcones

The purpose of the present work was to investigate, following previous works, naphthylchalcones as antihyperglycemic agent in glucose loaded animal model, insulin secretion as well as the action of these compounds on glucose uptake in a target tissue of insulin. The naphthylchalcones were found to have an acute serum glucose-lowering effect in hyperglycemic normal rats. In addition, chalcones 2 and 4 stimulated significantly the insulin secretion induced by glucose. These results suggest that the presence of nitro group and their position in the phenyl rings are responsible for the antihyperglycemic activity of chalcones. Additionally, the effect of chalcones on serum glucose-lowering seems to be a consequence of insulin secretion and these chalcones represent potential compounds with strong antihyperglycemic properties. (C) 2009 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.