A non-insulin herbal treatment to improve liver tissue in diabetic rats through gavage of walnut oil enriched with a phytosterol

Abstract The present study was formulated in order to evaluate the effect of gavage of walnut oil enriched with different doses of a phytosterol, i.e. β-sitosterol (30, 45 and 60 mg kg−1) on liver tissue in diabetic rats. Walnut oil was extracted through cold press method and analyses of the extracted oil were performed by gas chromatography (GC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Determination of liver tissue was carried out through staining via three protocols, i.e. hematoxylin and eosin (H&E stain), trichrome, and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL). The results of the present study revealed that gavage of the extracted oil from the walnut enriched with medium and high doses of β-sitosterol could improve liver tissue condition in the diabetic rats. These results indicate that the herbal treatment introduced in this study could be considered a potential non-insulin method to treat diabetic patients.