Screening for antiepileptic activity of Moringa oleifa root extract

Abstract

Epilepsy is a neuropsychological disorder. It is the consequence of a paroxysmal uncontrolled discharge of neuron within the central nervous system. Epilepsy is a collection of diverse disorders that together affect approximately 1% of the general population. Around 75-80% of epileptic patients may be provided with adequate seizure control with the help of conventional antiepileptic drugs. Current therapies are largely symptomatic and are aimed at controlling seizures in affected individuals. There are number of drugs available for treatment of epilepsy in modern therapy such as Felbatol, Gabitril, Lyrica, Tomax, zonegran, trilepta. But the major disadvantage being faced is their chronic side effect which necessitates the use of herbal extract. Extract of Moringa Oleifa (Moringaceae) roots, a medicinal plant were used in neuro protective Ayurvedic preparations and were evaluated for its protective effect against seizures induced by Maximal Electro shock (MES) method in Male Wistar albino mice. Herbal drugs are acting at site having same mechanism of action as that of synthetic drugs. A daily dose of 250 and 500 mg/kg of the extract was administered to the animals for 15 days, after which seizures were induced by Maximum electro shock method and the duration of various phases of epileptic attacks were recorded and compared with the control animals. A significant reduction in the time taken for recovery was noted in the experimental animals. The levels of biogenic amines such as dopamine, serotonin and nor-adrenaline in the forebrain region were also estimated and a significant level of restoration was observed in the extract treated animals