Abstract |
BR-16A is an herbal (non-allopathic) medication used in India to enhance cognition. Sixty adult male Sprague Dawley rats received either BR-16A (200 mg/kg/day) or vehicle alone for 16 days. During the first 7 days, the rats were trained in a spatial memory task using the Hebb Williams complex maze. Once a day for the next 2 days, rats in BR-16A and control groups received either true or sham electroconvulsive shock (ECS). During the last 7 days of the study, the rats were reexposed to the maze to assess recall of pre-ECS training and to evaluate further improvement in learning scores. BR-16A-treated rats performed better than controls both before and after ECS. It is concluded that BR-16A facilitates learning and that this effect extends to a protection against ECS-induced anterograde and retrograde amnesia. BR-16A may hence hold promise in the restriction of ECT-induced cognitive compromise. An unexpected observation in this study was that BR-16A attenuated seizure duration; implications and mechanisms are discussed.
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Authors | S Faruqi, C Andrade, S Ramteke, J Joseph, B V Venkataraman, M A Naga Rani |
Journal | Convulsive therapy
(Convuls Ther)
Vol. 11
Issue 4
Pg. 241-7
(Dec 1995)
ISSN: 0749-8055 [Print] United States |
PMID | 8919574
(Publication Type: Journal Article)
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Chemical References |
- Mentat
- Plant Extracts
- Psychotropic Drugs
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Topics |
- Amnesia
(drug therapy, etiology)
- Amnesia, Retrograde
(drug therapy, etiology)
- Animals
- Electroshock
(adverse effects)
- India
- Male
- Maze Learning
(drug effects)
- Medicine, Ayurvedic
- Plant Extracts
(pharmacology)
- Plants, Medicinal
- Psychotropic Drugs
(pharmacology)
- Rats
- Rats, Sprague-Dawley
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