Globally, the incidence of diabetes is increasing annually, and China has the largest number of patients with diabetes. Patients with type 2 diabetes need lifelong medication, with severe cases requiring surgery. Diabetes treatment may cause complications, side-effects, and postoperative sequelae that could lead to adverse health problems and significant social and economic burdens; thus, more efficient hypoglycemic drugs have become a research hotspot. Glucose metabolism disorders can promote diabetes, a systemic metabolic disease that impairs the function of other organs, including the heart, liver, and kidneys. Cyclocarya paliurus leaves have gathered increasing interest among researchers because of their effectiveness in ameliorating glucose metabolism disorders. At present, various compounds have been isolated from C. paliurus, and the main active components include polysaccharides, triterpenes, flavonoids, and phenolic acids. C. paliurus mainly ameliorates glucose metabolism disorders by reducing glucose uptake, regulating blood lipid levels, regulating the insulin signaling pathway, reducing β-cell apoptosis, increasing insulin synthesis and secretion, regulating abundances of intestinal microorganisms, and exhibiting α-glucosidase inhibitor activity. In this paper, the mechanism of glucose metabolism regulation by C. paliurus was reviewed to provide a reference to prevent and treat diabetes, hyperlipidaemia, obesity, and other metabolic diseases.
Keywords: Cyclocarya paliurus; glucose metabolism; insulin secretion; metabolic diseases; type 2 diabetes.