Exploring the Anti-anxiety activity of Centratherum anthelminticum.

Kalijiri (Centratherum Anthelminticum, Family - Asteraceae) is an herbal plant that has been widely used in India traditional medicine for the treatment of different disorders (eg. Analgesic, Antipyretic, Antihelmintic, Antihyperglycemic, Antimicrobial, Antibacterial and Diuretic). Nevertheless, the available scientific information about this species is scarce and there are no reports related to its possible effect on the CNS. In this work, the effects of Methanolic extract of seeds of Centratherum Anthelminticum (CA) were evaluated in mice using behavioral tests sensitive to clinically effective Antianxiety compounds. The extract (100 and 200 mg/kg) administered i.p. was able to show significant effect on the anxiety as compare to the standard drug i.e. Diazepam (2 mg/kg). Present study confirms that the extract showed significant Antianxiety activity at both dose levels which is comparable with standard Antianxiety drug diazepam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]