The effects of Hypericum perforatum (St John's wort) on morphine withdrawal syndrome and comparison with clonidine have been investigated in morphine-dependent rats. Adult male Wistar rats were subjects. The frequencies of withdrawal behavioral signs (rearing, teeth chattering and jumping) induced by naloxone challenge were demonstrated in morphine dependent rats receiving Hypericum perforatum ...

Background and Objective: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a movement disorder with debilitating symptoms. Available treatments for PD mainly include its symptomatic relief with no prevention of its progression. Due to the iron-chelating and antioxidant effect of phytic acid (PA), this study was conducted to assess its protective effect in 6-hydroxydopamine-induced model of PD in rat. Materials and ...

Observations: Hypericin, originating from Hypericum perforatum, is a potent photosensitizer known to induce skin phototoxicity when given systemically. Hypericum perforatum is a botanical extracts with anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effect. Photocontact dermatitis is a common cutaneous reaction by various herbs. We describe a 54-year-old female patient with Hypericum perforatum associated ...

Purpose. The present study evaluated the effect of Hypericum perforatum dry extract in an experimental model of binge eating (BE). Methods. BE for highly palatable food (HPF) was evoked in female rats by three 8-day cycles of food restriction/re-feeding and acute stress on the test day (day 25). Stress was induced by preventing access to HPF for 15 min, while rats were able to see and smell it....

Hypericum perforatum, commonly known as St. John’s Wort, has been found to exhibit many medicinal, especially anti-depressant, properties. Hypericin is thought to be the main chemical constituent responsible for H. perforatum’s medicinal properties. We report here the ability of H. perforatum and hypericin to inhibit the growth of mouse mammary cancer CRL2539 cells. H. perforatum, at concentrat...

UNILATERAL injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OH-DA) into the dopamine (DA) cell bodies in the substantia nigra of a rat induces a degeneration of the entire nigro-striatal DA neuron system (Ungerstedt, 1968, 1971a). The lesion causes the animal to deviate in movements and posture towards the lesioned side (Ungerstedt, 1968, 1971b). Due to the high specificity of the 6-OH-DA induced lesion (Unge...

Objective: Hypericum perforatum has demonstrated antidepressant efficacy when compared to placebo, but comparisons with other antidepressants remain controversial. We assessed the efficacy and safety of Hypericum perforatum in comparison with fluoxetine, in a 8-week double-blind trial in patients with mild to moderate depression. Method: Seventy-two outpatients were randomly assigned to receive...

Hypericum perforatum is known to have diverse medicinal uses for centuries. The antidepressant activity of Hypericum perforatum is widely accepted and proved in both animal and clinical studies. Present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of Hypericum perforatum in a battery of animal models for metabolic disorder. Hypericum is tested for hypolipidemic activity in normal rats, antiob...

Background & Aims: With regard to the neuroprotective effect of creatine in some neurological disorders like cerebral ischemia, this study was conducted to evaluate the effect of creatine in an experimental model of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Involvement of oxidative stress was also assessed. Methods: In this experimental study, male rats (n = 40) were divided into 5 groups, i.e. sham-operated (...