• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.33-50
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• 1976

As a continuation of series of works on the pharmacological actions of Panax ginseng. three kinds of behavioral experiments were carried out using rats and mice. The occurrence of component Posterns of general behavioral activity in rat was examined by visual scanning using the ting sample method in the ad lib. And he hunger deprivated situation. In normal ad lib. situation, the eating behavior of rat treated with 100mg/kg of ginseng saponin was significantly more frequent than that of saline control at the night and throughout the 24 hr period. But grooming was less frequent than the control at the same period. In the hunger situation followed by 90~120 hrs of feed deprivation, the locomotive activity and rearing awe significantly more often and sleeping was less frequent in the two dosage g roups of ginseng saponin (10 and 100 mg/kg) than in the saline group though out the observation period. Training of avoidance conditioning in rats was done in a two-way shuttle box. The number of conditioned response (CR) in which the animal avoided sucessfully an electric shock by running in to the other compartment of the hex was regarded as an index of learning performance. Ginseng saponin in doses of 2.5 mg/kg Produced a significantly increased CR in total avoidance tria1s compared with the control. Although other dosage groups of ginseng saponin (5.0, 50mg and 100 mg/kg) showed no significant statistical difference from the normal control, it tended to increase in CR in the ginseng groups than in the control. An aggressive behavior in mice was observed in n shock-generating fighting box. The occurrence of reflexive fighting between two animals induced by an electric shock applied to the feet war checked as an index of aggression. The occurrence of reciprocal fighting episode immediately after the onset. Of the shock was significantly decreased in the dosage group of 400 mg/kg ginseng saponin, but it did net differ in the 100 mg/kg group of ginseng saponin from the control group. The dose, 400 mg/kg of ginseng saponin, inhibited fighting behavior in more than 80% of the Pairs. but 100 mg/kg of ginseng did inhibit it in less than 20% of the pairs.