Methyl jasmonate (MJ) is one of the most well-studied plant stress
hormones belonging to the
jasmonate family. Previous studies have shown that MJ potentiated
pentobarbitone sleeping time and enhanced
GABA-mediated inhibitory neurotransmission, suggesting potential benefits in disorders associated with hyperactivity of the brain. This study was carried out to evaluate whether MJ has
anticonvulsant and
anxiolytic properties in mice. The
anticonvulsant effect was assessed based on the prevention of
tonic-clonic seizures induced by chemoconvulsant agents in mice. The
anxiolytic property was evaluated utilizing the elevated plus maze (EPM) and light/dark transition paradigms. The effect of MJ on spontaneous locomotor activity (SMA) was also assessed. Mice received intraperitoneal (i.p.)
injections of MJ 30 min before the tests were carried out and
diazepam (2 mg/kg, i.p.) was used as the reference
drug. MJ (50-400 mg/kg) did not protect the mice against
tonic-clonic convulsions induced by
picrotoxin (10 mg/kg, i.p.) or
strychnine (3 mg/kg, i.p.). However, MJ (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg) offered 20, 60, and 100% protection against
pentylenetetrazole (100 mg/kg, i.p.)-induced convulsions. In a similar manner to
diazepam (2 mg/kg), MJ (400 mg/kg) produced a marked
sedative effect as shown by decreases in the number of lines crossed and the duration of ambulation in the open field test. In contrast to
diazepam (2 mg/kg), MJ (5-50 mg/kg) did not show
anxiolytic effects in the EPM and light/dark transition paradigms. These findings suggest that
methyl jasmonate at high doses possessed
anticonvulsant properties in the
pentylenetetrazole animal model of
epilepsy, but did not produce
anxiolytic activity in mice.