The Flavescens's Sedative And Hypnotic Effects

In recent years, with the development and application of traditional Chinese herb sophora japonica, it shows effective on treating insomnia. However, little study has been carried out on sedation and hypnosis of sophora japonica . It is necessary to provide experimental basis for further clinical application of sophora japonica. So our experiments address the question of sedation and hypnosis effect of sophora japonica and its probable mechanism with the behavior experiments, electrophysiological techniques, and neural biochemical methods.The behavioral experiments indicate sedation action of sophora japonica extract by alcohol on central nervous system with the joggle cage test and Extroversion for Windows system. The results shows that high and low dosage of extract could prolong time of sleep, increase the number of sleep mice (p<0.05), the high doses also could inhibit independence activity intensity (p<0. 05), reduce activity distance, and its time and frequency (p<0. 01, p<0. 05). The results has revealed that extract has effects on sedation and hypnosis.On the basis of the behavioral experiments, we have studied further the effect on the electrical signal of hippocampal slice by the routine electrophysiological techniques. One is observed the electric signals(ps) induced by penicillin sodium from CA1 neurons of hippocampal slice in vitro using the extracellular recording technique. The other is detected the changes in sleep stage after the drug direct administration intracerebroventricular .Because the extract has complex components, it was difficult to act directly on neural tissue, matrine( Mat) was choused in our electrophysiological studies .The results in the experiment of slices indicated that the different dosage could have different inhibition on excitability induced by penicillin sodium . In vivo after the direct .administration of drug intracerebroventricularly, the resultsshows Mat could prolong the time of fast(REM) in sleep stage .reduce the time of wake comparing with penicillin sodium positive control. This implies that the inhibition of Mat on hippocampal neurons results in the time of fast ( REM) significantly increased.The changes of the Glu and GABA level are detected and analyzed with HPLC after the administration of drug in mice. The results are that the level of Glu remarkably reduce in high doses group comparing with control, which depending on the dosage of extract , the level GABA also decreases comparing with control , however the Change Level of Glu greater than the GABA' s. This suggests that the inhibition of sophora japonica extract is relevant to the decreasing level of Glu.Based on above results, it is reasonable to draw a conclusion that sophora japonica extract by alcohol has effects on sedation and hypnosis . The mechanism of sedation and hypnosis is probably inhibit the excitability of hippocampal neurons induced by penicillin sodium duo to the reducing of Glu, which leading to the activity of neurons translations falling, and showing sedation and hypnosis actions on central nervous system.