3,4,5-Trimethoxycinnamic acid,one of the constituents of Polygalae Radix exerts anti-seizure effects by modulating GABAAergic systems in mice

Polygalae radix is an important medicinal plant that is widely used in most of africa. 3,4,5-trimethoxycinnamic acid (tmca) is one of the constituents of polygalae radix. until now,the mechanisms involved in the anti-seizure property of tmca are still unclear. we examined the anti-seizure effect of tmca. tmca administered at doses of 5,10 and 20 mg/kg and evaluated anti-seizure effects by maximal electroshock (mes) and pentylenetetrazol (ptz) models in mice. tmca administered at doses of 10 and 20 mg/kg significantly reduced the incidence of mes-induced tonic hindlimb extension (the). tmca significantly delayed the onset of myoclonic jerks (mj),and decreased the seizure severity and mortality compared with the vehicle-treated animals in ptz seizure model. tmca 10 and 20 mg/kg treated groups also did not determined generalized clonic seizures (gcs). pretreatment with a gabaa/benzodiazepine (bz) receptor antagonist flumazenil blocked the anti-seizure effects of tmca. these data support the further investigation of tmca as a gabaa/bz receptor agonist for anti-seizure therapy. © 2015 the authors.