Gross behavioural effects of acute doses of artensunate in Wistar rats

It was the aim of this study to investigate possible modulating influences on gross behavior in doses of artesunate in wistar rats. Thirty-six healthy adult rats were placed into nine groups comprising of eight test groups and one control group. Artesunate was prepared into different doses, and two test animals were administered with one of the doses following which they were observed together for various behavioral parameters for a period of one hour. The control group received no drug treatments, but were observed for behavioral activities after they were administered with 0.4ml of normal saline. All the behavioral data were pooled and subjected to statistical analysis using the One Way Anova with Dunnet multiple comparison post adhuc test. Results were expressed as Mean ±SEM, and P values of (p ≤0.05) regarded as statistically significant. Behavioral excitatory effects were observed at lower doses of artesunate in mainly grooming, rearing and feeding behaviors. Sedative effects were observed in locomotor, sniffing, climbing and scratching activities and these later effects were also seen at the lower doses of the drug. Meanwhile, sedative effects were seen in all the behavioral parameters at the higher doses. It was concluded that artesunate may have some clearly definable central nervous system properties. Specifically, it was noted that artesunate may have dual behavioral modulating properties of both excitatory and sedative effects in wistar rat. It was concluded that the mechanism of action for these alterations in gross behavior may be closely linked with the neurotransmitter systems that normally regulate behavior in the central nervous system.Keywords: Artesunate, Central nervous effects, Gross Behavior, Modulation, Behavioral neurotransmitters, Dopaminergic syste