Orrù Alessandro, Casu Maria Antonietta, Tambaro Simone, Marchese Giorgio, Casu Gianluca, Ruiu Stefania
aNational Research Council (C.N.R.), Institute of Translational Pharmacology, U.O.S. of Cagliari, Science and Technology Park of Sardinia Polaris, Pula, Italy bDepartment of NVS, Division for Neurogeriatrics Novum, Center for Alzheimer Research, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden.
Behav Pharmacol. 2016 Feb;27(1):57-68. doi: 10.1097/FBP.0000000000000195.
Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal extracts (WSEs) may possess therapeutic perspectives in the treatment of inflammation and pain. We aimed to evaluate the antinociceptive property of a WSE in the formalin test and to investigate the involvement of several neurotransmitter systems in this effect. The time spent licking the formalin-injected paw was recorded in CD1 mice after pretreatment with increasing doses of WSE. Also, c-Fos spinal cord expression and the effects of different compounds were investigated under these experimental conditions. Finally, the efficacy of WSE was analyzed following an injection of glutamate. WSE reduced the antinociceptive response during the tonic but not the acute phase of the formalin test and decreased formalin-induced c-Fos expression in spinal neurons. These effects were antagonized by the opioid antagonist naltrexone, whereas GABA, cannabinoid, δ-opioid, and nitric oxide compounds were ineffective. The administration of WSE also reduced nociception and c-Fos expression induced by glutamate injection. These results showed that WSE is effective in assays of chemical-induced nociception, indicating that this plant has potential valuable properties for the treatment of specific painful conditions. The antinocicetive effects of WSE in the formalin test appeared to be specifically mediated by the opioidergic system, although the involvement of the glutamatergic system cannot be excluded.
睡茄提取物（WSEs）在炎症和疼痛治疗方面可能具有治疗前景。我们旨在评估WSE在福尔马林试验中的抗伤害感受特性，并研究几种神经递质系统在此效应中的作用。在用递增剂量的WSE预处理后，记录CD1小鼠舔注射福尔马林爪子的时间。此外，在这些实验条件下研究了c-Fos在脊髓中的表达以及不同化合物的作用。最后，在注射谷氨酸后分析WSE的疗效。WSE在福尔马林试验的强直期而非急性期降低了抗伤害感受反应，并降低了福尔马林诱导的脊髓神经元中c-Fos的表达。这些效应被阿片类拮抗剂纳曲酮拮抗，而GABA、大麻素、δ-阿片类和一氧化氮化合物则无效。WSE的给药也降低了谷氨酸注射诱导的伤害感受和c-Fos表达。这些结果表明，WSE在化学诱导的伤害感受试验中有效，表明这种植物在治疗特定疼痛病症方面具有潜在的宝贵特性。WSE在福尔马林试验中的抗伤害感受作用似乎特别由阿片肽能系统介导，尽管不能排除谷氨酸能系统的参与。
