Cissus corniifolia commonly called splanch, has been allegedly used in the treatment of diabetes. The effect of methanolic leaf extract of this plant on glucose concentration and histopathology of the pancreas and liver were assessed. The preliminary phytochemical screening of methanolic extract of Cissus cornifolia revealed the presences of alkaloid, flavonoid, saponin, steroid, terpenoid and tannin. Also, the LD50 of the extract was found to be above 5000mg/kg orally. Rats were made diabetic by intraperitoneal injection of 150mg/kg body weight of Alloxan monohydride and divided into five (5 ) 1-5 with group 5 rats in each group. Groups 2-4 were treated with 50,100 and 200mg/kg body weight of the extract respectively while group 1 and 5 was served as negative and positive controls respectively. The fasting blood glucose levels were determined at intervals of 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 days. On day 0 there were no significant differences in the fasting blood glucose levels in all the groups when compared with the control. As regard to the dose of 100 mg/kg 7 days extract administration there was a significant decrease in the blood glucose levels when compared with control group. Glibenclamide as a positive control significantly reduce the fasting blood glucose level at 11 and 13 days respectively when compared to the negative control .The highest activity reside at the lowest dose of the extract administered 50mg/kg body weight. At the end of two weeks of the experiment, the animals were sacrificed and the pancreas and liver were section for histopathology. The histopathological studies of the pancreas of diabetic animals revealed the degeneration of pancreatic islet cells, but with the restoration after treatment with various doses of the plant extract. The liver shows no histopathological change. The implications of the result obtained in the present study provide the scientific rationale for the use of Cissus cornifolia as anti-diabetic agent in the management of diabetes.
