Sedative Effects of Hot Flower Infusion of Nyctanthes arbo-tristis on Rats.

OLEACEAE; SEDATIVES; AYURVEDIC medicine; CENTRAL nervous system depressants; BUDDHIST monks; ASIAN medicine

Hot infusion of Nyctanthes arbo-tristis Linn. (Oleaceae) flowers are used often by some elderly Sri Lankan Buddhist monks as a potential sedative. However, in Ayurvedic, traditional and folkloric medicine of Sri Lanka, no such implication has been made regarding therapeutic activity of these flowers. The aim of this study was to investigate the sedative potential of N. arbo-tristis flowers in rats using the hole-board technique. A hot flower infusion was made as used by the monks in different concentrations (3.7, 7.5, 12.5, or 18.7 mg/kg) and was orally administered. Sedative potential was assessed 2 h post-treatment. The infusion had a moderate dose-dependent conscious sedative activity in male but, surprisingly, not in female rats. The infusion was well tolerated (in terms of overt toxic signs, liver or kidney functions) even following subchronic treatments and also did not show any overt signs of dependence (classical signs of withdrawal reactions). Sedation appears to result mainly by antioxidant, membrane stabilizing, and by yet undiscovered mechanisms of sedative actions of anthocyanin, a flavonoid, in the flower. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Pharmaceutical Biology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)