Antidiabetic and antioxidant potentials of the ethyl acetate fraction of Momordica charantia leaf methanolic extract: in vitro and in silico studies.

Momordica charantia leaf ethyl acetate fraction demonstrated notable antidiabetic and antioxidant activities, supporting its traditional use in the management of diabetes-related disorders. Among the pooled subfractions, SF6 showed the strongest enzyme inhibitory activity against alpha-amylase (IC50 = 52.8 ± 1.44 μg/mL) and alpha-glucosidase (IC50 = 28.7 ± 0.81 μg/mL), as well as strong antioxidant effects in DPPH (IC50 = 12.3 ± 0.35 μg/mL) and ABTS (IC50 = 18.4 ± 0.46 μg/mL) assays. LC-MS profiling identified key phytoconstituents, including 6"-O-acetylastragalin, afzelin, momordicoside E, naringenin, and prunin. Molecular docking showed favourable interactions of these compounds with diabetes- and oxidative stress-related targets, with 6"-O-acetylastragalin showing particularly strong binding to aldose reductase and KEAP1. ADMET prediction suggested generally acceptable drug-likeness for most compounds, although momordicoside E showed poorer predicted oral bioavailability and higher toxicity. Overall, these findings indicate that M. charantia leaves are a promising source of bioactive compounds with antidiabetic and antioxidant potential.