Introduction: Diabetic muscular atrophy (DMA) is a complication of diabetes mellitus characterized by proximal lower extremity muscle weakness, atrophy, pain, sensory disturbances, and, in severe cases, quadriplegia. Inflammation and oxidative stress are implicated in DMA; hence, therapeutic agents targeting either pathway, in addition to glycemic control, have been found beneficial for ameliorating DMA. Ocimum gratissimum (OG), scent leaf, cultivated for its culinary and medicinal values, is documented to possess antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. However, there is a dearth of information on the effect of OG on DMA.

Aims: This study investigated the effects of the aqueous leaf extract of OG (ALOG) on diabetes-induced muscular atrophy in male Wistar rats.

Method: Twenty male Wistar rats were assigned to four groups: Control, ALOG, Untreated-Diab, and ALOG-Diab (5 rats each). Diabetes was induced with streptozotocin in the Untreated-Diab and ALOG-Diab groups. Control and Untreated-Diab received distilled water, while ALOG and ALOG-Diab received 400 mg/kg ALOG orally for 4 weeks. Body weight and Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG) were monitored weekly. Thereafter, the rats were anesthetized with ketamine and xylazine, and the gastrocnemius muscle was obtained for glycogen determination; the right rectus femoris and extensor digitorum longus muscles were obtained to assess oxidative stress biomarkers and to extract mitochondria for mitochondrial permeability transition (mPT) assays. The left counterpart muscles were fixed for histology and morphometric analysis. Data were expressed as mean ± SEM and analyzed using one-way ANOVA.

Results: Untreated diabetic rats had higher FBG levels and significant weight loss compared with controls. The ALOG-Diab rats showed reduced FBG and body weight loss compared with the Untreated-Diab. Untreated Diab rats had lower gastrocnemius glycogen, increased malondialdehyde, increased mPT pore opening, and decreased ATPase activity; these changes were mitigated in ALOG-Diab rats. Histology confirmed muscular atrophy in Untreated-Diab, which was reversed in ALOG-Diab.

Conclusion: Muscular atrophy was ameliorated by Ocimum gratissimum leaf extract, potentially through mechanisms that include enhanced glycogenesis, reduced oxidative stress, and stabilization of mitochondrial permeability transition in the skeletal muscles of diabetic male Wistar rats.