Evaluation of Terminalia bellerica for its Antipsychotic Potential

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the antipsychotic potential of Terminalia bellerica in experimental animal models. Male Wistar rats (180220 g) and Albino mice (25-30 g) were used for the study. The antipsychotic effect of the Terminalia bellerica was evaluated on haloperidol induced catalepsy, cooks pole climbing apparatus, locomotor activity on photoactometer and ketamine induced stereotypic behavior. Different groups of rats were fed orally with a specially prepared diet containing various concentrations (4%w/w, 6%w/w and 8% w/w) of Terminalia bellerica fruit powder (TBFP) for 15 consecutive days. Further, the biochemical estimations were done by estimating brain dopamine levels. The TBFP produced significant dose dependent potentiation of haloperidol (1 mg/kg, i.p.) induced catalepsy in rats, significantly increased the time taken by the rats to climb the pole in dose dependent manner, significantly decreased the locomotor activity of rats. The TBFP significantly decreased ketamine (50 mg/kg, i.p.) induced stereotyped behavior in a dose dependent manner. Terminalia bellerica fruit powder (TBFP) significantly decreased the brain dopamine levels. The results suggest that TBFP posse’s antipsychotic activity. Further neurochemical investigation can explore the mechanism of action of the plant drug with respect to anti-dopaminergic functions and help to establish the plant as an antipsychotic agent.