Dose-effect study of Gelsemium sempervirens in high dilutions on anxiety-related responses in mice

Abstract

IntroductionThis study was designed to investigate the putative anxiolytic-like activity of ultra-low doses of Gelsemium sempervirens (G. sempervirens), produced according to the homeopathic pharmacopeia.MethodsFive different centesimal (C) dilutions of G. sempervirens (4C, 5C, 7C, 9C and 30C), the drug buspirone (5 mg/kg) and solvent vehicle were delivered intraperitoneally to groups of ICR-CD1 mice over a period of 9 days. The behavioral effects were assessed in the open-field (OF) and light–dark (LD) tests in blind and randomized fashion.ResultsMost G. sempervirens dilutions did not affect the total distance traveled in the OF (only the 5C had an almost significant stimulatory effect on this parameter), indicating that the medicine caused no sedation effects or unspecific changes in locomotor activity. In the same test, buspirone induced a slight but statistically significant decrease in locomotion. G. sempervirens showed little stimulatory activity on the time spent and distance traveled in the central zone of the OF, but this effect was not statistically significant. In the LD test, G. sempervirens increased the % time spent in the light compartment, an indicator of anxiolytic-like activity, with a statistically significant effect using the 5C, 9C and 30C dilutions. These effects were comparable to those of buspirone. The number of transitions between the compartments of the LD test markedly increased with G. sempervirens 5C, 9C and 30C dilutions.ConclusionThe overall pattern of results provides evidence that G. sempervirens acts on the emotional reactivity of mice, and that its anxiolytic-like effects are apparent, with a non-linear relationship, even at high dilutions.

Comment on: “Dose-effect study of Gelsemium sempervirens in high dilutions on anxiety-related responses in mice” (Magnani P, Conforti A, Zanolin E, Marzotto M and Bellavite P, Psychopharmacology, 2010)

“…The fact that G. sempervirens was completely inactive in the Light Dark test, and the evidence of diazepam-induced opposite effects was considered merely secondary. Magnani et al (2010) reached the same conclusion even though G. sempervirens modified mice behaviour in the Light Dark test without influencing behaviour in the center of the Open Field. It is more complicated here to determine the effect of buspirone since the dose significantly reduced spontaneous locomotor activity.…”

“…Diazepam, used as a standard anxiolytic drug, was completely ineffective on mouse behaviour in the Open Field, but increased the time in the light compartment and transitions in the Light Dark test (see Tables 1 and 2, p. 4). When the G. sempervirens 5 C, 7 C and 30 C dilutions were evaluated in another strain of mice (C57BL/6J), again, the opposite effect from that reported by Magnani et al (2010) was found. G. sempervirens centesimal dilutions modified mice behaviour in the Open Field (Table 3, Bellavite et al 2009a p. 5).…”

Clinical Study of the Effectiveness of Pluralist Homeopathy in Generalized Anxiety Disorder

“…Changes in lifestyle and diet are an increasingly used approach for treating anxiety disorders [5]. Recent studies in experimental animals have shown that some homeopathic remedies have an anxiolytic effect comparable to conventional pharmacological treatments [6][7][8].…”

Biological effects and physico-chemical properties of extremely diluted aqueous solutions as a function of aging-time

“…At very high dilution levels (beyond the Avogadro limit) the probability of the presence of molecules of the original substance is near to zero (Marschollek et al 2010). This aspect represents one of the reasons why the biological effectiveness of EDS is still controversial, although there is emerging evidence for their in vitro activity (Brizzi et al , 2011Belon et al 2004;Witt et al 2007;Frenkel et al 2010;Endler et al 2011) as well as in vivo activity (Bellavite et al 2006;Welles et al 2007;Baumgartner et al 2008;Shah-Rossi et al 2009;Betti et al 2010;Jäger et al 2010;Magnani et al 2010;Wyss et al 2010). Based on physico-chemical measurements, it was hypothesized that the particular preparation technique of EDS could lead to a structural alteration of the aqueous solvent that appears to trigger the formation of molecular aggregates of water molecules (Samal and Geckeler 2001;Elia et al * Corresponding author.…”