Behavioral properties of essential oils of Zanthoxylum armatum DC leaves: Augmented by chemical profile using GC/GC-MS

In the present study,the essential oils of the leaves of zanthoxylum armatum (zeo) were screened for various behavioral properties viz.,sedative-hypnotic,anxiolytic,antidepressant,and muscle relaxant activities. in sedative-hypnotic assays,zeo demonstrated marked reduction in mice movement in open field test at 100 and 200 mg/kg i.p. and potentiated the duration of sleep,in phenobarbitone induced sleeping mice. profound reduction in the number of steps and rearing were observed at 100 and 200 mg/kg in a dose dependent manner. when analyzed in forced swimming test,it was devoid of any antidepressant effect at test doses. similarly,zeo showed significant muscle relaxant activity at 100 and 200 mg/kg i.p. in both chimney test and inclined plant test. gc/gc-ms analysis of zeo led to the identification of 34 components,linalool being the most dominant constituent. the results suggested that zeo has strong sedative-hypnotic,anxiolytic and muscle relaxant properties in various animal models.