effects of ginsenosides on pentylenetetrazol-induced convulsions during estrus cycle in rat

Ginseng is known as the king of all herbs in terms of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities and recently has become more involved in the treatment of neurological diseases. in this regard, this study aimed to determine the effects of ginsenosides on pentylenetetrazol-induced epilepsy during the estrus cycle. for this purpose, 30 rats were randomly divided into five groups, namely control (saline), valproic acid (vpa, 75 mg/kg), ginsenosides (50 mg/kg), ginsenosides (100 mg/kg), and ginsenosides (150 mg/kg) with four subgroups (proestrus, estrus, metestrus, and diestrus). subsequently, the initiation time of myoclonic seizures (itms), initiation time of tonic-clonic seizures (itts), and seizure duration (sd) were determined. according to the results, itms and itts significantly increased in the vpa-treated group (p<0.05). ginsenosides (100 and 150 mg/kg) administration significantly increased itms and itts (p<0.05). moreover, the itms and itts in ginsenosides-treated rats were significantly higher in luteal phases, compared to the follicular phase (p<0.05). in addition, pretreatment with vpa significantly decreased sd, compared to the control group (p<0.05). a significant decrease in sd was observed in the rats pretreated with ginsenosides (100 and 150 mg/kg) (p<0.05). seizure duration significantly decreased in animals that received ginsenosides in luteal phases, compared to the follicular phase (p<0.05). these results suggested that ginsenosides have anticonvulsant effects that are more prominent during the luteal phase than the follicular phase.