PRELIMINARY ANTIPSYCHOTIC EVALUATION OF Phaseolus lunatus (L.) HYDROMETANOL SEED EXTRACT IN MICE

ABSTRACT

A preliminary study on the evaluation of the antipsychotic and the sedative effect of Phaseolus lunatus Hydro-methanol seed extract in mice. Bean seed of Phaseolus lunatus has been used in ethnomedicine as a sleep enhancer and in prevention and management of psychosis-like symptoms. The aim of this study is to evaluate the antipsychotic effect and the sedative property of Phaseolus lunatus hydro-methanol seed extract in albino mice. Acute doses of Phaseolus lunatus Hydro-methanol seed extract were given to mice orally and antipsychotic properties were studied using amphetamine and ketamine model for schizophrenia, the onset and duration of induced sleep was studied using phenobarbitone. The results obtained from the study on the effect of Phaseolus lunatus hydro-methanol seed extract on barbiturate induced sleeping time, shows that Phaseolus lunatus hydro-methanol seed extract has a dose dependent effect in significantly (p=0.0002) reducing sleep latency (onset of sleep) but showed no significant effect in prolonging sleeping time (duration of sleep) in male albino mice at acute oral doses of 100 mg, 200 mg and 400 mg/kg. The results obtained for the antipsychotic evaluation using the amphetamine and ketamine schizophrenia model in mice show that Phaseolus lunatus hydro-methanol seed extract has no significant (p>0.05) antipsychotic activities at acute oral doses of 100 mg, 200 mg and 400 mg/kg in male albino mice. In conclusion it was deduced that Phaseolus lunatus may have no antipsychotic properties and does not affect the duration of sleep but may have a faciliatory role on the onset of sleep.

Keywords:Phaseolus lunatus, antipsychotic,  sleep,amphetamine,ketamine,phenobarbitone