| RESEARCH PAPER |
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| Year : 2000 | Volume
: 32
| Issue : 6 | Page : 339-346 |
Anti-cataleptic, anti-anxiety and anti-depressant activity of gold preparations used in Indian systems of medicine
Bajaj Sonia, SB Vohora
Correspondence Address:
Bajaj Sonia
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
Objectives: To study traditional gold preparations for anti-cataleptic, anti-anxiety and anti-depressant effects.
Methods: Swarna Bhasma used in Ayurveda, Kushta Tila Kalan used in Unani-Tibb and Auranofin used in modern medicine were subjected to videopath analyzer, vogel conflict/anxiometer, elevated plus maze, and social behavioural deficit tests for anxiolytic activity, behavioural despair and learned helplessness tests for antidepressant activity, haloperidol-induced catalepsy tests for neuroleptic activity, and maximum tolerated dose, gross behavioural observations and hematological parameters for safety evaluation in rats and mice.
Results: The test drugs caused significant increase in punished drinking episodes in anxiometer and open arm entries and time in elevated plus maze and decrease in behavioural deficit. A decrease in immobility time in forced swimming test, normalization of shock induced escape failures in learned helplessness test, and reduction of haloperidol-induced catalepsy scores were also noted in treated animals. The maximum tolerated doses were found to be more than 80 times the effective doses and no weight loss or untoward effects were observed on gross behaviour and hematological parameters.
Conclusions: Traditional gold preparations used in Ayurveda and Unani-Tibb exhibited anxiolytic, antidepressant and anticataleptic actions with wide margin of safety.
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