Diospyros fischeri Gurke (Ebenaceae) is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of epilepsy. Dichloromethane, ethylacetate, and ethanol extracts of the roots, at doses between 100 and 1600 mg/kg BW, inhibited convulsions induced by the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAa) receptor antagonist, pentylenetetrazole (PTZ), in a dose dependent manner. The extracts also exhibited low toxicity against brine shrimps giving LC(50) values between 45.4 and 95.4 microg/ml. These results provide evidence for the potential of D. fischeri extracts to treat absence seizures, especially given their seemingly innocuous nature.
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Afr J Tradit Complement Altern Med
November 2006
Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University College of Health Sciences, P.O.Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Diospyros fischeri Gurke (Ebenaceae) is used in traditional medicine for the treatment of epilepsy. Dichloromethane, ethylacetate, and ethanol extracts of the roots, at doses between 100 and 1600 mg/kg BW, inhibited convulsions induced by the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAa) receptor antagonist, pentylenetetrazole (PTZ), in a dose dependent manner. The extracts also exhibited low toxicity against brine shrimps giving LC(50) values between 45.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAfr J Tradit Complement Altern Med
August 2006
Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University College of Health Sciences, P.O. Box 65001, Dares Salaam, Tanzania.
Evaluation of extracts of Diospyros fischeri Gurke (Ebenaceae), which is used traditionally for the treatment of epilepsy shows that the aqueous extract of the tem bark has no effect against picrotoxin induced convulsions in mice. However, an 80% ethanol extract of the bark caused dose-dependent suppression of convulsions induced by 10 mg/kg body wt picrotoxin, at doses between 100-3200 mg/kg body wt. Petroleum ether, 1:1 dichloromethane:methanol, and methanol extracts also suppressed picrotoxin-induced convulsions, but had a slightly lower inhibitory effect.
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