Research Progress on the Mechanism of Natural Plant Essential Oil in the Intervention of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is a heterogeneous disease with insulin deficiency and insulin resistance (IR) as the main etiology, and is often accompanied by complications. Volatile oil is a volatile oil liquid extracted from natural plants, which has many pharmacological effects such as regulating qi, relieving pain, inhibiting bacteria and reducing inflammation. In recent years, there have been numerous reports on the treatment of type 2 diabetes by natural plant volatile oil and its effective components, which has become one of the new directions in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In this paper, the essential oil and its active components of natural plants are taken as the starting point, and the material basis, mechanism and signaling pathway of the essential oil in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus and its complications at home and abroad in recent years are comprehensively analyzed and summarized. The essential oil and its active components such as carvacrol, paeonol, β-caryophylene are emphatically elaborated. IR is inhibited by protecting pancreaticβ-cells, inhibiting α-glucosidase activity, regulating the abundance and diversity of intestinal microbiota, and regulating glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4), adenylate activated protein kinase (AMPK), phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) signaling pathways. Various mechanisms of action can improve type 2 diabetes mellitus, in order to provide some reference and basis for the intervention of volatile oil in type 2 diabetes mellitus and the development of new green antidiabetic drugs.