Studies Of Clitoria Ternatea Linn. Root Extract On Behavioural Effects And In Vivo Hippocampal Synaptic Plasticity In A Rat Model Of Chronic Cerebral Hypoperfusion
Year: 2018
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Clitoria ternatea Linn. (CT) is a native plant in tropical countries like \nMalaysia. The root part of the plant has been studied extensively for its \npharmacological activities. However, its contribution towards learning and memory \nenhancement together with in vivo synaptic plasticity in a chronic cerebral \nhypoperfusion (CCH) rat model has yet to be explored. For quality control purposes, \ntaraxerol content (0.15% ± 0.01) in the methanolic extract of CT root was determined \nusing validated gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analytical method. \nIn the present study, the permanent bilateral occlusion of common carotid arteries \n(PBOCCA) surgery method was employed to develop CCH model in rats. The acute \nand chronic (28 days) treatment of CT root extract at doses of 200 and 300 mg/kg, \np.o. resulted in a significant enhancement in memory retention of the passive \navoidance task. Effects of CT root extract were further assessed in the Morris water \nmaze task. The results demonstrate that CT root extract (200 and 300 mg/kg, p.o.) \ntreatment restored spatial learning and reference memory impairments induced by \nCCH. Chronic treatment of CT root extract (200 and 300 mg/kg, p.o.) was also found \nto diminish CCH-induced neuronal damage in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. \nAn increased acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in the frontal cortex and \nhippocampus of the PBOCCA rats was significantly inhibited by the CT root extract \nat a high dose (300 mg/kg, p.o.). In synaptic plasticity study, CT root extract (200 and 300 mg/kg, p.o.) restored the CCH-induced in vivo hippocampal long-term \npotentiation (LTP) suppression at the Schaffer collateral CA3-CA1 synapse. These \nresults indicate that CT root extract may affect learning and memory functions in \nPBOCCA rats via LTP facilitation. CT root extract (300 mg/kg, p.o.) did not show \nany improvement on spatial memory and hippocampal LTP in scopolamine \n(muscarinic receptor antagonist; 1.0 mg/kg, i.p.) pre-treated PBOCCA rats. In \ntoxicity study, repeated doses of CT root extract (100, 200 and 300 mg/kg, p.o.) were \nfound to be safe in PBOCCA rats after 28 days treatment. In conclusion, the \nmethanolic extract of CT root extract restored the learning and memory deficits and \nin vivo synaptic plasticity impairment in a CCH rat model, thus supporting the \ntherapeutic potential of CT root extract in the treatment of vascular dementia (VaD).
Author: Thenmoly K Damodaran
Language: English
Subfield: Neurology
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3204357983