Laboratory of Human and Animal Physiology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, 26504, Rio, Greece.
Eur J Nutr. 2013 Feb;52(1):107-16. doi: 10.1007/s00394-011-0292-2. Epub 2011 Dec 28.
The goals of this study were to monitor the effect of drinking of herbal tea from Sideritis clandestina subsp. clandestina for 6 weeks on behavioral and oxidant/antioxidant parameters of adult male mice and also to evaluate its phytochemical composition.
The phytochemical profile of the Sideritis tea was determined by liquid chromatography-UV diode array coupled to ion-trap mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization interface. The effects of two doses of the herbal infusion (2 and 4% w/v, daily) intake on anxiety-like state in mice were studied by the assessment of their thigmotactic behavior. The oxidant/antioxidant status of brain (-Ce), liver and heart of adult male Balb-c mice following the consumption of Sideritis tea was also evaluated via the measurement of malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels using fluorometric assays. Our study was further extended to determine the antioxidant effects of the herbal tea on specific brain regions (cerebral cortex, cerebellum and midbrain).
The identified compounds were classified into several natural product classes: quinic acid derivatives, iridoids, phenylethanol glycosides and flavonoids. Our results showed that only the 4% Sideritis tea exhibited anxiolytic-like properties as evidenced by statistically significant (p < 0.05) decrease in the thigmotaxis time and increase in the number of entries to the central zone in comparison with the control group. Consumption of both tea doses (2 and 4% w/v) elevated GSH (12 and 28%, respectively, p < 0.05) and decreased MDA (16 and 29%, p < 0.05) levels in brain (-Ce), while liver and heart remained unaffected. In regard to the effect of herbal tea drinking (2 and 4% w/v) on specific brain regions, it caused a significant increase in GSH of cerebellum (13 and 36%, respectively, p < 0.05) and midbrain (17 and 36%, p < 0.05). Similarly, MDA levels were decreased in cerebellum (45 and 79%, respectively, p < 0.05) and midbrain (50 and 63%, respectively, p < 0.05), whereas cerebral cortex remained unaffected.
Mountain tea drinking prevents anxiety-related behaviors and confers antioxidant protection to rodent's tissues in a region-specific, dose-dependent manner, and its phytochemical constituents are shown for the first time.
本研究旨在监测饮用山小橘亚种（Sideritis clandestina subsp. clandestina）草药茶 6 周对成年雄性小鼠行为和氧化应激/抗氧化参数的影响，并评估其植物化学成分。
采用液相色谱-紫外二极管阵列与离子阱质谱联用，电喷雾电离接口测定山小橘茶的植物化学成分。通过评估其触须行为来研究两种草药浸剂（2%和 4%w/v，每日）摄入对小鼠焦虑样状态的影响。还通过荧光测定法测量丙二醛（MDA）和还原型谷胱甘肽（GSH）水平，评估成年雄性 Balb-c 小鼠饮用山小橘茶后大脑（-Ce）、肝脏和心脏的氧化应激/抗氧化状态。我们的研究进一步扩展到确定草药茶对特定脑区（大脑皮层、小脑和中脑）的抗氧化作用。
鉴定出的化合物分为几类天然产物：奎尼酸衍生物、环烯醚萜、苯乙醇糖苷和类黄酮。我们的结果表明，只有 4%的山小橘茶表现出类似抗焦虑的特性，这表现在触须时间显著减少（p < 0.05），进入中央区域的次数增加。与对照组相比，两种茶剂量（2%和 4%w/v）的摄入均升高了脑（-Ce）中的 GSH（分别升高 12%和 28%，p < 0.05）并降低了 MDA（分别降低 16%和 29%，p < 0.05）水平，而肝脏和心脏则不受影响。关于草药茶饮用（2%和 4%w/v）对特定脑区的影响，它导致小脑（分别增加 13%和 36%，p < 0.05）和中脑（分别增加 17%和 36%，p < 0.05）中的 GSH 显著增加。同样，小脑（分别降低 45%和 79%，p < 0.05）和中脑（分别降低 50%和 63%，p < 0.05）中的 MDA 水平降低，而大脑皮层则不受影响。
山小橘茶的饮用以一种特定于区域的、剂量依赖性的方式预防与焦虑相关的行为，并赋予啮齿动物组织抗氧化保护，其植物化学成分也是首次被发现。
