Research Journal of Pharmacy and Technology

Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access
Open Access Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Restricted Access Subscription Access

Neuroprotective Effects of Feeding Centella Asiatica (L) Urb. – Study of Hippocampal Neurons in Pups Born to Alcohol-fed Female Wistar Rats


Affiliations
1 Assistant Professor of Physiology, Shrinivas Institute of Medical Sciences, MUkka, Mangalore., India
2 Post-Doctoral Fellow, Centre of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, Allahabad - 211008., India
3 Department of Physiology, Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India
     

   Subscribe/Renew Journal


Objectives: To evaluate the neuroprotective function of C. asiatica on the offsprings in maternal alcohol abuse. Centella Asiatica (C. asiatica) has been known to Indian traditional medicine Ayurveda as an effective brain tonic. Alcohol is an abused substance and poses a health risk to all in society, including pregnant women. We force-fed alcohol to pregnant rats and studied its effect on rat pups' hippocampus, which were fed with C. asiatica. The results were also correlated to the cognitive performance of the animals. Methods: Adult female rats, confirmed of pregnancy, were fed with 30% (w/v) alcohol at a dosage of 20g/kg body weight, daily oral gavage. The pups were divided into seven groups (n=6 each) as control and experimental/treated. Results: Hippocampus was isolated, and the slices were stained, and the cell count was done by applying appropriate techniques. The pup quality, cognitive parameters showed differences in alcohol-treated groups. The cell count was performed and compared among the groups. A significant increase in the cell count and the hippocampal neuron population's size was observed in the rats fed with C. asiatica extract. The pup quality was also better. Their cognitive performance was significantly better. Conclusion: This study revealed the adverse effects of fetal alcohol exposure, which reversed after treatment with C. asiatica. This study confirms the role of C. asiatica as an effective neuroprotective agent, and it could be useful to treat the patients suffering from the effects of exposure to alcohol in fetal life and early childhood.

Keywords

Alcohol, Centella asiatica, Hippocampus, Neuronal damage, Neurotropic agent.
Subscription Login to verify subscription
User
Notifications
Font Size


  • Alcohol consumption in India on the rise: WHO Report. 2014.

  • Wilsnack SC. Wilsnack RW. Hiller-Sturmhofel S. How women drink: epidemiology of women’s drinking and problem drinking. Alcohol Health Res World. 1994;18: 173-181.

  • Mohan D. Chopra A. Ray R. Sethi H. Alcohol consumption in India; A cross-sectional study. In: Room R, Demers A, editors. Survey of Drinking Patterns and Problems in Seven Developing Countries. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2001 pp 103-114.

  • Baan R. Straif K. Grosse Y. Secretan. Ghissassi FE. Bouvard V. et al. Carcinogenicity of alcoholic beverages. Lancet Oncol. 2007April; 8(4):292-3. doi: 10.1016/s1470-2045(07)70099-2.

  • Burd L. Roberts D. Olson M. Odendaal H. Ethanol and the placenta: a review. J Mat-Fetal Neon Med. 2007 May; 20(5):361-75. doi: 10.1080/14767050701298365.

  • Wacha VH. Obrzut JE. Effects of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome on Neuropsychological Function. Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities. 2007 April;19:217-226. DOI:10.1007/S10882-007-9050-Z

  • Mitha K.V. Saraswati Yadav. Santhosh M. Ganaraja B. Effect of alcohol consumption in pregnancy on pup quality, exploratory behaviour, memory retention in Wistar rats Int J Applied Biol Pharm Tech., 2014 May;Vol-5 (3): 73 - 78.

  • Sokol RJ. Clarren SK. Guidelines for use of terminology describing the impact of prenatal alcohol on the offspring. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1989 Aug;13: 597-598. DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1989.tb00384.x

  • Miller MW. Migration of cortical neurons is altered by gestational exposure to ethanol. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1993 April;17: 304-314. DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1993.tb00768.x

  • Miller MW. Limited ethanol exposure selectively alters the proliferation of precursor cells in the cerebral cortex. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1996 Feb; 20: 139-143. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1996.tb01056.x.

  • Coles CD. Brown RT. Smith IE. Platzman KA. Erickson S. Falek A. Effects of prenatal alcohol exposure at school age: physical and cognitive development. Neurotoxicol Teratol. 1991 July-Aug;13: 357-367. doi: 10.1016/0892-0362(91)90084-a.

  • Livy DJ. Miller EK. Maier SE. West JR. Fetal alcohol exposure and temporal vulnerability: effects of binge-like alcohol exposure on the developing rat hippocampus. Neurotoxicol Teratol. 2003 July-Aug;25: 447-458. doi: 10.1016/s0892-0362(03)00030-8.

  • Mattson SN. Riley EP. Sowell ER. Jernigan TL. Sobel DF. Jones KL. A decrease in the size of the basal ganglia in children with fetal alcohol syndrome. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. 1996 Sept;20(6): 1088-1093. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1996.tb01951.x.

  • Archibald S L. Fennema-Notestine C. Gamst A. Riley EP. Mattson SN. Jernigan TL. Brain dysmorphology in individuals with severe prenatal alcohol exposure. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology. 2001 Mar;43(3): 148-154.

  • Sowell ER. Sowell ER. Thompson PM. Peterson BS. Mattson SN. Welcome SE. Engenius AL. Riley EP. Jernigan TL. Toga AW. Mapping cortical gray matter asymmetry patterns in adolescents with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure. Neuroimage. 2002b Dec;17: 1807-1819. doi: 10.1006/nimg.2002.1328.

  • Mattson SN. Riley EP. Gramling L. Delis DC. Jones KL. Neuropsychological comparison of alcohol-exposed children with or without physical features of fetal alcohol syndrome. Neuropsychology. 1998 Jan;12(1): 146-53. doi: 10.1037//0894-4105.12.1.146.

  • Roebuck TM. Simmons RW. Mattson SN. Riley EP. Prenatal exposure to alcohol affects the ability to maintain postural balance. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1998b Feb;22: 252-258.

  • Mitha K.V. Saraswati Yadav. Ganaraja B. Improvement in Cognitive Parameters Among Offspring Born to Alcohol Fed Female Wistar Rats Following Long Term Treatment with Centella Asiatica. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol. 2016 Jun;60(2) : 167–173.

  • Ranade AV. Shende MB. Neuro- Pharmacological Review on Four Medhya Dravyas Described By Charaka. Int Ayurvedic Med J. 2013 March-April;1(2): 1-4.

  • Yadavji Trikamji Acharya, Caraka, Āyurveda Dīpikā Vyakhyā, Chaukhambha Prakashan, Varanasi, Re-print 2011.

  • Sakshi Singh. Asmita Gautam. Abhimanyu Sharma. Amla Batra. et al. Centella Asiatica (L.): A Plant with Immense Medicinal Potential But Threatened. Int. J Pharm Sci. Rev Res. 2010 Sept-October;4(2): 9-17.

  • Kumar M. Gupta YK. Effect of different extracts of Centella Asiatica on cognition and markers of oxidative stress in rats. J Ethnopharmacol. 2002 Feb;79: 253-60.

  • Sharma PV. Dravyaguna Vigyana, vol II and V, Press Chaukhambha Bharati Academy: Varanasi. (1981)

  • Bhattacharyya S. Constituents of Centella Asiatica. Part III. Examination of the Indian variety. Indian Chem Soc. 1956;33: 893-898.

  • Pittella F. Dutra RC. D Junior D. Lopes MTP. Barbosa NR. Antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of Centella Asiatica (L) Urb. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2009 Aug;10: 3713-3721. doi: 10.3390/ijms10093713.

  • Sivarajan VV. Balachandran I. Ayurvedic Drugs and Their Plant Sources. New Delhi: Oxford and IBH Publishing. 1994;289-90.

  • Sunanda BPV. Latha Rammohan B. Uma Maheswari MS. Surapaneni Krishna Mohan. Evaluation of the Neuroprotective Effects of Centella Asiatica Against Scopolamine Induced Cognitive Impairment in Mice. Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Education and Research. 2014 Sept;48 (4): 31-34. doi:10.5530/ijper.48.4.5

  • Jariya Umka Welbat. Apiwat Sirichoat. Wunnee Chaijaroonkhanarak. Parichat Prachaney. Wanassanun Pannangrong. Poungrat Pakdeechote. et al. Asiatic Acid Prevents the Deleterious Effects of Valproic Acid on Cognition and Hippocampal Cell Proliferation and Survival. Nutrients. May, 2016 May;8(5): 303. doi: 10.3390/nu8050303

  • Nio E. Kogure K. Yae T. Onodera H. The effects of maternal ethanol exposure on neurotransmission and second messenger systems: a quantitative autoradiographic study in the rat brain. Dev Brain Res. 1991 Sept;62: 51-60. doi: 10.1016/0165-3806(91)90189-p

  • Gupta YK. Veerendra MH. AK Srivastava. Effect of Centella Asiatica on pentyletetrazole-induced kindling, cognition and oxidative stress in rats. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2003 Feb;74: 579-85. doi: 10.1016/s0091-3057(02)01044-4.

  • Nithya Ravichandran. Sampath Madhyastha. Vrinda Mariya Elenjickal. Teresa Joy. Vandana Blossom. Mangala M. Pai. Does Methylphenidate Enhance Cognition In Normal Rats And Does It Affect Neuronal Population? International Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. 2015 Nov;7(11): 330-333.

  • Adamec RE. Partial kindling of the ventral hippocampus: identification of changes in limbic physiology which accompany changes in feline aggression and defense. Physiol Behav. 1991 Mar;49(3): 443-53. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(91)90263-n.

  • Amaral DG. Witter MP. Hippocampal formation. In: Paxinos G, editor. The rat nervous system, 2nd ed. San Diego: Academic Press. 1995.

  • Uban KA. Sliwowska JH. Lieblich S. Ellis LA. Yu WK. Weinberg J. Galea LAM. Prenatal alcohol exposure reduces the proportion of newly produced neurons and glia in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus in female rats. Horm Behav. 2010 Nov;58(5): 835-43. doi: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.08.007

  • Miki T. Yokoyama T. Sumitani K. Kusaka T. Warita K. Matsumoto Y. et al. Ethanol neurotoxicity and dentate gyrus development. Congenit Anom (Kyoto). 2008 Jan;48: 110-117. doi: 10.1111/j.1741-4520.2008.00190.x.

  • Diaz Perez H. Espinosa Villanueva J. Machado Salas J. Behavioral and hippocampal morphological changes induced by ethanol administered to pregnant rats. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1991;625: 300-4. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1991.tb33855.x.

  • Savage DD. Cruz LL. Duran LM. Paxton LL. Prenatal ethanol exposure diminishes activity-dependent potentiation of amino acid neurotransmitter release in adult rat offspring. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1998 Nov;22: 1771-1777.

  • Kaneko WM. Riley EP. Ehlers CL. Electrophysiological and behavioral findings in rats prenatally exposed to alcohol. Alcohol. 1993 March-April;10: 169-178.

  • Clements KM. Girard TA. Ellard CG. Wainwright PE. Short-term memory impairment and reduced hippocampal c-Fos expression in an animal model of fetal alcohol syndrome. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. 2006 May;29: 1049-1059. doi: 10.1097/01.alc.0000171040.82077.e.

  • Furumiya J. Hashimoto Y. Effects of ethanol exposure on spatial learning in mice during synaptogenesis. Nihon Arukoru Yakubutsu Igakkai Zasshi. 2011 April;46(2): 250-9.


Abstract Views: 99

PDF Views: 0




  • Neuroprotective Effects of Feeding Centella Asiatica (L) Urb. – Study of Hippocampal Neurons in Pups Born to Alcohol-fed Female Wistar Rats

Abstract Views: 99  |  PDF Views: 0

Authors

Mitha KV
Assistant Professor of Physiology, Shrinivas Institute of Medical Sciences, MUkka, Mangalore., India
Saraswati Jaiswal Yadav
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Centre of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, Allahabad - 211008., India
Rashmi K S
Department of Physiology, Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India
Ganaraja Bolumbu
Department of Physiology, Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India

Abstract


Objectives: To evaluate the neuroprotective function of C. asiatica on the offsprings in maternal alcohol abuse. Centella Asiatica (C. asiatica) has been known to Indian traditional medicine Ayurveda as an effective brain tonic. Alcohol is an abused substance and poses a health risk to all in society, including pregnant women. We force-fed alcohol to pregnant rats and studied its effect on rat pups' hippocampus, which were fed with C. asiatica. The results were also correlated to the cognitive performance of the animals. Methods: Adult female rats, confirmed of pregnancy, were fed with 30% (w/v) alcohol at a dosage of 20g/kg body weight, daily oral gavage. The pups were divided into seven groups (n=6 each) as control and experimental/treated. Results: Hippocampus was isolated, and the slices were stained, and the cell count was done by applying appropriate techniques. The pup quality, cognitive parameters showed differences in alcohol-treated groups. The cell count was performed and compared among the groups. A significant increase in the cell count and the hippocampal neuron population's size was observed in the rats fed with C. asiatica extract. The pup quality was also better. Their cognitive performance was significantly better. Conclusion: This study revealed the adverse effects of fetal alcohol exposure, which reversed after treatment with C. asiatica. This study confirms the role of C. asiatica as an effective neuroprotective agent, and it could be useful to treat the patients suffering from the effects of exposure to alcohol in fetal life and early childhood.

Keywords


Alcohol, Centella asiatica, Hippocampus, Neuronal damage, Neurotropic agent.

References