Antidiabetic Effect of Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) Flower

Plants are good sources of compounds which have been associated with health benefits, including antidiabetic properties. Research has shown that plant polyphenols such as anthocyanins possess amylase and/or glucosidase inhibition activities and they may be used as supplementary treatments for improving glycemic control in diabetic patients. In this unfunded project conducted at Abertay University from 2016 to 2020, the inhibitory effect of butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) - a tropical plant from the Leguminosae family with a blue flower - against starch digestive enzymes during simulated digestion was investigated. The basic composition of the flower extract was characterised and the efficacy of the inhibition of the extract against amylase and glucosidase was quantified through a series of in vitro starch digestion experiments. The interaction of the extract with enzyme amylase is monitored using a time-resolved fluorescence technique.