The effects of vanillyl alcohol on rats with kainic acid-induced epileptic seizures

• Main Authors: Chia-Jung Lee, 李佳容
• Other Authors: Ching-Liang Hsieh
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2000
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/69923534636646820645

碩士 === 中國醫藥學院 === 中國醫學研究所 === 88 === Epilepsy is a common chronic disease that could be congenital or induced by many factors such as toxin, metabolic imbalance or brain injury. Almost all of the modern anticonvulsants have the side effects of drowsy, dizziness, headache or paralysis. Chinese traditional medicines may offer another choice for epileptic patients. Gastrodia elata Bl. (GE) is a traditional Chinese herb that is usually used to treat convulsive disorder. The aim of this study was to investigate the anticonvulsant effect of vanillyl alcohol (VA) which is the active component of Gastrodia elata Bl., and the physiological mechanisms of its action in rats. A total of 55 male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were used for study. Twenty five of these rats received intraperitoneal injection (i.p.) of VA 100mg/kg, VA 200mg/kg or no treatment 30min prior to kainic acid (KA, 12mg/kg) administration, respectively. Behavior and EEG were monitored from 15min prior to drug administration to 3 hours after KA administration. The remaining 30 rats were divided into 5 groups of 6 rats as follows: 1) Normal group: no treatment was given; 2) Control group: received KA (12 mg/kg) i.p.; 3) VA 100 group and 4) VA 200 group; received VA 100 mg/kg, VA 200 mg/kg i.p. 30 min prior to KA administration, respectively. 5) Contrast group, received PBS i.p. 30 min prior to KA administration. Throughout the experimental course, behavioral observation, EEG and EMG recordings were performed until 1 hour after KA administration. All 30 rats were used to measure the Lucigenin-CL counts and Luminol-CL counts in the whole blood, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities in the brain. Our results indicated that VA 100 mg/kg and VA 200 mg/kg may decreased the incidence of KA-induced wet dog shakes in rats. They also decreased the KA-induced free radicals. VA-treated animals showed lower activity of SOD in cortex of both hemispheres than control group, even than normal group. But no similar response was seen in the cerebellum. These findings suggest that the anticonvulsant effect of VA possibly result from its suppressive effect of free radicals formation, not from the induction of SOD activity.