Effects of nicotine on pain and aggressivity and antagonism of these effects by mecamylamine

Nicotine caused a dose-dependent decrease [1.25 and 2.5 mg/kg] on writhing score of the mice, made painful by intraperitoneal [i.p.] acetic acid injection. At the dose of 0.75 mg/kg i.p. nicotine lowered attack score and time of the mice but there wasn't a significant change at 0.5 mg/kg dosage. These effect of nicotine were blocked by 2.5 mg/kg mecamlamine which was given 15 minutes before nicotine administration

Subacute and chronic toxicity of taxine in mice

The subacute and chronic toxicity of taxine, was investigated in mice. The drug was administered as sulphate salt at dosages of 4.5, 6, 8 mg/kg body weight by daily single subcutaneous injection. The treatment lasted 3 weeks for subacute and 3 months for chronic tests. The evaluated biochemical and hematological parameters as well as the pathological examinations and behavioural observations on the animals showed no harmful effect attributable to the drug. It was concluded that long-term application of taxine was well tolerated by mice

Ibn Sina's cardiac drug zarnab

The brief survey of the yew [Taxus baccata L.] shows that its active principle, taxine, has negative inotropic, negative chronotropic and A-V blocking effects which result from its Na- and Ca-current inhibiting properties. It is interesting that the yew, called as zarnab by Ibn Sina, was mentioned in his cardiac drugs. Ibn Sina recommended it as a cardiac remedy much earlier than his colleagues in the West who use the drugs having similar actions, in the therapy of arrhythmias and angina pectoris