Effect of Methanolic Extract of Sarcostemma acidum (Roxb) Voigt on Brain Neurotransmitters for Its Anti-Psychotic Potential

Author(s): Thomas Kurian*, Sibi P Ittiyavirah and Jyoti Harindran

Abstract: Psychiatric disorders occur due to the disturbances of neuronal network and neurotransmitters. The neurotransmitters, mainly responsible for those actions were Dopamine, Serotonin, γ – amino butyric acid (GABA), acetyl choline and adrenaline. The drugs and medications currently available for the treatment of psychiatric disorders include benzodiazepines and barbiturates, which produce beneficial effects along with severe extrapyramidal side effects. Medicinal plants have reported having CNS activity useful for treating human psychological problems and research as products for neurological disorders has progressed rapidly. Sarcostemma acidum Roxb. Voigt a traditional medicinal plant has reported to produce several psychopharmacological effects, which includes CNS inhibitory activity, anti-psychotics and anxiolytics. Even though no proper scientific data exists. In this study, we studied the effect of methanolic extract of S.acidum (MESA) on brain neurotransmitter levels using rats. We evaluated the levels of GABA, Dopamine and Serotonin employing standard procedures. From the results, it was found that MESA at the dose of 200 mg/kg produced a significant increase in all the estimated neurotransmitters when compared to that of control. The effect produced is similar to that of haloperidol. On the other side MESA at the dose of 100 mg/kg produced no significant change with that of control, which shows the dose-dependent activity. The concentration of Serotonin and GABA was increased. The anti-psychotic activity may be due to the action on serotonin, and the CNS depressant activity may be due to GABAergic action. Dopaminergic blocking activity may also be a probable mechanism of anti-psychotic activity.

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