Pharmacological Evidences for the Antiamnesic Effects of Desmodium gangeticum in mice

Dementia is one of the age related mental problems and a characteristic symptom of various neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease. Desmodium gangeticum DC. (Leguminosae) is widely used in Ayurveda for treating various neurological disorders. In the present study, the effectiveness of aqueous extract of D. gangeticum in attenuating scopolamine-induced amnesia in mice was investigated. Passive avoidance paradigm was used to assess long-term memory. In order to delineate the possible mechanism through which D. gangeticum elicits the anti-amnesic effects, we studied its influence on central cholinergic activity by estimating the acetylcholine content of the whole brain and acetylcholinesterase activity at different regions of the mouse brain, viz., cerebral cortex, midbrain, medulla oblongata and cerebellum. Pretreatment with D. gangeticum (100 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg, p.o.) for seven successive days, reversed scopolamine induced amnesia in mice. D. gangeticum increased mice brain acetylcholine content and decreased acetyl cholinesterase activity in a similar manner to the standard cerebro-protective drug piracetam. Hence, aqueous extract of D. gangeticum can be used to delay the onset and reduce the severity of the symptoms of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.