[Preventive effect of grapefruit juice [Citrus Paradisi Macf.] on morphine withdrawal symptom in male rats]

Addiction to opiates such as morphine is one of major public health problems. It has been shown that in addicted animals, administration of antioxidant agents such as vitamin C can reduce the withdrawal symptoms [WDS]. The aim of this study was to evaluate the preventional effect of grapefruit juice [Citrus Paradisi Macf.] on withdrawal symptoms in rats. In this experimental study, Sixteen male Wistar rats [250-300g] randomly divided into two groups [n=8]. All animals were addicted by intraperitoneal [i.p] injection of morphine [the 1-3 days: 10 mg/kg, the 4-6 days: 20 mg/kg and the 7-9 days 40 mg/kg; daily] for 9 days. The first group received 2 ml Citrus Paradisi Macf. orally 1 hour before morphine administration. The sham group received 2 ml of normal saline. Naloxone [10mg/kg, s.c] was administrated 45 minutes after of an additional dose of morphine [40 mg/kg] in the tenth day for withdrawal symptoms inducing. Then withdrawal symptoms such as frequency of wet-dog shaking, teeth chattering, defecation and penis licking were evaluated for 30 minutes. All withdrawal symptoms including frequency of wet-dog shaking, teeth chattering, defecation and penis licking were reduced in the Citrus Paradisi Macf. group in comparison with the sham group significantly [p < 0.05]. Our results showed that presumably antioxidant activity of Citrus Paradisi Macf. can reduce withdrawal symptoms. Although the exact mechanisms of its effect in brain need to be elucidate

Effects of the Crocus sativus L. extract on the acquisition and expression of morphine-induced conditioned place preference in female mice

Experiments indicated that Crocus sativus L. extract may have an interaction with morphine. The effects of C. sativus on the euphoric properties of morphine in female mice did not studied. In the present study, the effects of water extract of C. sativus stigma on the acquisition and expression of morphine-induced conditioned place preference [CPP] in female N-MARI mice [20-25 g] were investigated. This experimental study was conducted on the 136 female mice that were divided in 17 groups [n=8/group]. In a pilot study, different doses of morphine [1, 10 and 20 mg/kg] and the extract [10, 50 and 100 mg/kg] were injected to the animals for evaluation of the drugs ability to induction of place preference. In the second phase of the experiments, the extract of the C. sativus was administered during or after induction of morphine CPP. Then, CPP were tested in the animals. One-way Analysis of Variance [ANOVA] was proformed for statistical procedure. Administration of morphine [1, 10 and 20 mg/kg], increased the time spend in the compartment paired with morphine [i.e. conditioned place preference-CPP]. The increament was significant for the dose 10 and 20 mg/kg of morphine. Administration of the plant extract [50 mg/kg] also produced a significant CPP. Injection of the same doses of the extract before morphine [10 mg/kg] administration, caused a decrease in the time spent in drug-paired side in doses 50 and 100 mg/kg of the extract. In addition, injection of the plant extract in the test day to the animals in which received morphine [10 mg/kg] in the conditioning days decreased the expression of morphine CPP in the animals which was statisticaly significant for dose 10 mg/kg of the extract. It could be concluded that injection of the extract of C. sativus can inhibit the acquisition and expression of morphine-induced CPP. In addition, the extract produced CPP in female mice by it-self. These results indicated that saffron extract might be useful in morphine-induced psychological dependence in human as well

Effect of Portulaca oleraceae L. extracts on the morphine dependence in mice

This study was initiated to investigate the effect of Portulaca oleraceae on morphine dependence in mice. Dependence was induced using the subcutaneous injections of morphine for 3 days. On the day 4, morphine injected 2 h prior to intraperitoneal injection of naloxone. The plant extracts ethanolic or aqueous administered 0.5 h before the final dose of morphine. The number of jumping during the 30 min period after naloxone injection was considered as a measure of withdrawal syndrome. Both extracts reduced the jumping episodes dose-dependently. The maximum effect was observed at doses of 0.28 g/kg and 1.4 g/kg for the aqueous and ethanolic extracts, respectively. Clonidine and extracts decreased the total activity in locomotion test. These findings indicated that Portulacea oleraceae extracts can decrease morphine dependence in mice

[Effects of Matricaria Chamomilla extract on morphine withdrawal syndrome in mice]

Matricaria chamomilla [MC] contains flavonoids, which exert benzodiazepine-like activity and so it may be helpful in morphine withdrawal syndrome [MWS] treatment. To determine the effects of MC extract on morphine withdrawal syndrome signs in adult male mice. This was an experimental study carried out in two steps at the department of physiology, Qazvin School of medicine [Iran], in 2005. Step 1: 3 adult male mice [n=6] were originally divided into 2 groups marked as saline [control] and morphine [case] groups. The morphine group were injected by increasing doses of morphine [10, 20, 40 mg/kg, s.c], 3 times daily, for a total duration of 4 days and were further divided into 4 subgroups as morphine group and 3 MC extract groups receiving one dose of MC extract [10, 20 or 30 mg/kg I.P] at day 4, 30 min before naloxone injection. At the end of training day [4[th] days] all groups were injected by naloxone [5mg/kg I.P] and MWS was studied for 30 minutes. Step 2: another 30 adult male mice [n=6] were injected by saline, morphine and MC extracts as above except for morphine and naloxane which were injected as one single dose [50 mg/kg]. Naloxone was injected 3hr after the last injection of morphine and the frequencies of withdrawal behaviors [jumping, climbing] were assessed later. The results of the present study showed that the acute and chronic administration of MC at doses used in our experiment significantly abolished the morphine withdrawal syndrome signs [jumping, climbing, writhing, weight loss] compared with morphine group. Our data suggest that the MC can attenuate the expression of withdrawal behaviors in male mice