Antiepileptical Properties Of Ginsenosides From Korean Red Ginseng And Ginseng Cell Culture (Dan25)

The molecular modification of antiepileptic drugs and direct synthesis of new drugs with the predetermined antiepileptic properties are perspective. New neurochemical attacking to solve the problem including prevention and inhibition of seizures seems to be related to ginsenosides and ginseng polypeptides. The main study based on the severity of febrile convulsions of rat pups has been done from the earlier investigations of antiepileptical action of ginsenosides between KGTRI and MSU (Chepurnov, Park et al., 1995) with different kinds of experimental models of epilepsy. From the cultured cell line DAN25 of ginseng root, the extracts of ginsenosides made in "BIOKHIMMASH" were studied by the project of preclinical anticonvulsant screening (Stables, Kupferberg, 1997). The inhibition of severity of convulsions, decrease of seizures threshold, decrease of audiogenic seizures in rats of different strains and normalization of cerebral blood flow (measured by hydrogen test) were demonstrated in rats after i.c.v., intraperitoneally and orally administration, respectively. The antiepileptical effects by the combination of compounds from ginseng; were compared with the iuluence of Rg1, Rb1, Rc and with the well known antiepileptical drugs such as carbamazepine, valproic acid. The base for the research is obtained by using the WAG/Rij strain (Luijtelaar, Coenen, Kuznetcova), an excellent genetic model for human generalized absence epilepsy. The improving action of gensinosides was effectively demonstrated on the model of electrical kindling of amygdala of WAG/Rij rats with genetically determined absences, and the influences of ginsenosides on the slow wave discharges have also been being investigated. The different characteristics of a kindling process exerted in the sex-different region of the amygdala and demonstrated that the level of sex steroids and content of neurosteroids in amygdaloid tissue can modify the development of seizures. The chemical structures of ginsenosides not only have some principal differences from well-known antiepileptical drugs but the Plant Pharmacology gives us unique possibility to develop new class of antiepileptic drugs and to improve its biological activity.