Artigo
Carvacrol, (−)-borneol and citral reduce convulsant activity in rodents
Registro en:
1684–5315
Autor
Quintans-Júnior, Lucindo José
Guimarães, Adriana Gibara
Araújo, Bruno Eduardo Silva de
Cavalcanti, Sócrates Cabral de Holanda
Santos, Márcio Roberto Viana dos
Moreira, Flávia Viana
Souza, Marilia Trindade de Santana
Nobrega, Franklin Ferreira de Farias
Almeida, Reinaldo Nobrega de
Santos, Márcio Roberto Viana dos
Cavalcanti, Sócrates Cabral de Holanda
Institución
Resumen
Carvacrol, a monoterpenic phenol present in essential oils of the Labiatae family, has been used through the ages as a source of flavor in food and for medicinal purposes. Borneol is a monoterpene found in several species of Artemisia and Dipterocarpaceae, used for anxiety, pain and anesthesia in
traditional Chinese. Citral, a mixture of two geometrical isomers (neral and geranial), is one of the most
important compounds in some citrus oils and has central nervous system (CNS) properties. The anticonvulsant effect of carvacrol (CARV), (−)-borneol (BOR) and citral (CIT) was investigated in two animal models of epilepsy. Mice were pretreated with CARV, BOR or CIT (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, i.p.)
30 min before pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) or maximal electroshock (MES) tests, the two most important animal epilepsy tests. The latency for development of convulsions and protection percentage was recorded. In order to investigate the involvement of GABAergic system, flumazenil was utilized. These
monoterpenes, CARV in a higher, but not in a lower dose (p < 0.001), BOR and CIT in all doses (p < 0.05 or p < 0.001), were capable of promoting an increase of latency for the development of convulsions induced by PTZ. Additionally, these compounds were efficient in preventing the tonic convulsions (p <
0.05) induced by MES. However, the GABAergic neurotransmitter system might be involved, at least in BOR effects. Henceforth, our results suggest that CARV, BOR and CIT possess anticonvulsant activity
effect against PTZ-induced convulsions and MES