Schisandrin B exerts hypnotic effects in PCPA-treated rats by increasing hypothalamic 5-HT and γ-aminobutyric acid levels.

Schisandrin B exerts hypnotic effects in PCPA-treated rats by increasing hypothalamic 5-HT and γ-aminobutyric acid levels. Exp Ther Med. 2020 Dec;20(6):142 Authors: Wang M, Li N, Jing S, Wang C, Sun J, Li H, Liu J, Chen J Abstract Schisandrin B (SchB) is one of the primary active components of Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., a traditional Chinese herb that has been used to treat insomnia for hundreds of years. Our previous studies revealed that SchB exerts sedative and hypnotic effects, increasing the content of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and the expression of its receptors in the brain tissues of rats. 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) is another important neurotransmitter involved in sleep regulation, although, to the best of our knowledge, there are no reports of its association with SchB. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine whether the hypnotic effect of SchB was partly due to alterations in the expression of 5-HT. The results indicated that SchB reduced sleep latency and increased sleep duration in parachlorophenylalanine (PCPA)-induced rats with insomnia by increasing 5-HT and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, and upregulating the expression of the 5-HT receptor 1A in the hypothalamus. SchB also increased the ratio of GABA to glutamic acid and the activity of glutamic acid decarboxylase, decreased the activity of GABA transaminase, and upregulated the expression of GABAA receptor α1 and GABAA receptor γ2 in the rat hyp...
Source: Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine - Category: General Medicine Tags: Exp Ther Med Source Type: research