The seed extract of Cassia obtusifolia offers neuroprotection to mouse hippocampal cultures.

The precise causative factors in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's (AD) and Parkinson's disease remain elusive, but mechanisms implicated comprise excitotoxicity, mitochondrial dysfunction, and in the case of AD, the amyloid beta peptide (Abeta). Current therapeutic strategies for such disorders are very limited; thus, traditional herbal medicines currently receive increased attention. The seeds of Cassia obtisufolia have long been used in traditional eastern medicine and more recently the ethanolic fraction of the seeds (COE) has been shown to attenuate memory impairments in mice.

Memantine acts as a cholinergic stimulant in the mouse hippocampus.

The non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist memantine, currently prescribed for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, is assumed to prevent the excitotoxicity implicated in neurodegenerative processes. Here, we investigated the actions of memantine on hippocampal function and signalling. In behavioural experiments using the water maze, we observed that memantine (at 2 mg/kg) reversed scopolamine-induced learning deficits in mice.