Figure 1.

Schematic representation of antidiabetic development from plant to clinical trial. The pathway from plant extract to effective therapy involves many steps. Plants, often identified from local knowledge/use, are a source of extract prepared using a range of approaches and the extracts screened using simple cell-based models such as Caco-2 cells or L6 skeletal myotubes for in vitro effects. Signaling pathways and effectors are used as surrogate assays for potential antidiabetic effects (e.g., glucose transport). Further work involves an examination of effects using rodent models of diabetes and clinical trials.