%0 Journal Article
%T Increased Seizure Latency and Decreased Severity of Pentylenetetrazol-Induced Seizures in Mice after Essential Oil Administration
%A Eleni Koutroumanidou
%A Athanasios Kimbaris
%A Alexandros Kortsaris
%A Eugenia Bezirtzoglou
%A Moschos Polissiou
%A Konstantinos Charalabopoulos
%A Olga Pagonopoulou
%J Epilepsy Research and Treatment
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/532657
%X The effect of pretreatment with essential oils (EOs) from eight aromatic plants on the seizure latency and severity of pentylenetetrazol- (PTZ-) induced seizures in mice was evaluated. Weight-dependent doses of Rosmarinus officinalis, Ocimum basilicum, Mentha spicata, Mentha pulegium, Lavandula angustifolia, Mentha piperita, Origanum dictamnus, and Origanum vulgare, isolated from the respective aromatic plants from NE Greece, were administered 60 minutes prior to intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of a lethal dose of PTZ to eight respective groups of Balb-c mice. Control group received only one i.p. PTZ injection. Motor and behavioral activity of the animals after EOs administration, development of tonic-clonic seizures, seizure latency and severity, and percentage of survival after PTZ administration were determined for each group. All groups of mice treated with the EOs showed reduced activity and stability after the administration of the oil, except for those treated with O. vulgare (100% mortality after the administration of the oil). After PTZ administration, mice from the different groups showed increased latency and reduced severity of seizures (ranging from simple twitches to complete seizures). Mice who had received M. piperita demonstrated no seizures and 100% survival. The different drastic component and its concentration could account for the diversity of anticonvulsant effects. 1. Introduction Several EOs derived from a variety of plants have been traditionally used as alternative treatments for headaches, migraines, allergies, fatigue, and stress; also, they have long been used as antibacterial agents due to their antimicrobial properties [1]. It is only, in recent years though, that interest has been focused on their possible use as a treatment for diseases of the Central Nervous System (CNS) due to the analgesic, anxiolytic, antidepressant, and antiepileptic properties that they possess. Studies are currently highlighting their potential role in cases of neurological disorders such as epilepsy, stroke, and Alzheimer¡¯s disease, [2¨C6] particularly focusing on their antioxidant as well as anticonvulsant effects [7¨C9]. Epilepsy is the term used to describe a group of disorders characterized by recurrent spontaneous seizures that apparently result from complex processes involving several neurotransmitter systems such as the glutamatergic, cholinergic, and gabaergic systems [10]. Actual estimations of the prevalence rate for epilepsy are 1-2% of the world population [11], and despite the fact that there is a considerable number of classic and
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ert/2013/532657/