[Effects of silybin on red blood cell sorbitol and nerve conduction velocity in diabetic patients]

The effects of silybin on red blood cell (RBC) sorbitol and nerve conduction velocity in 14 non-insulin dependent diabetic patients (female 9, male 5; average age 58.2 years) were reported. Their RBC sorbitol levels averaged 72.55 +/- 21.61 nmol/g.Hb, a value almost two times of non-diabetic controls (33.31 +/- 7.82 nmol/g.Hb). After 4 weeks of silybin (231 mg/d) therapy, RBC sorbitol dropped to 39.53 +/- 14.94 nmol/g.Hb, a highly significant reduction than that before silybin therapy. Silybin treatment had no effect on fasting blood glucose. In addition, silybin treatment slightly improved nerve conduction velocity, but statistically not significant. This report suggests that silybin may be a potent aldose reductase inhibitor, and valuable in the prophylaxis and treatment of diabetic complications.