Petiveria alliacea exerts mnemonic and learning effects on rats

Petiveria alliacea L. (Phytolaccaceae) is a perennial shrub native to the Amazon region and other tropical areas such as Central America and the Caribbean. Popularly known as mucuracaá, P. alliacea is used in the folk medicine for a broad variety of therapeutic purpose and also in religious ceremonies by slaves as a sedative, which highlights its properties on the Central Nervous System (CNS). The present study evaluated the effects of the P. alliacea leaves hydroalcoholic extract (PaLHE) on the cognition, including learning and memory. Three-month-old male and female Wistar rats (n=8–10/group) were administered with 900mg/kg of PaLHE. The behavioral assays included Step-down Inhibitory avoidance (IA) and Morris Water Maze (MWM) tests. Consistent with our previous reports, P. alliacea improved long-term memory. It also exerted previously unreported effects on short-term and spatial memory improvement, and increased learning in the tasks. The P. alliacea extract elicited mnemonic effects and improved the learning process in both IA and MWM tests. Our results highlight the importance of further studies in order to identify the active substances of the PaLHE and investigate the pharmacological mechanisms that underlies the reported effects. Petiveria alliacea L. (Phytolaccaceae) is a perennial shrub native to the Amazon Rainforest and tropical areas from the Central and South America, Caribbean, and Africa. It is widely used in traditional medicine for its huge variety of therapeutic properties. However, it is associated with toxic effects. The present study investigated the P. alliacea leaves hydroalcoholic extract (PaLHE) effects on the central nervous system (CNS) of rats, through the use of predictive behavioral test for assessing memory and learning. The results showed that PaLHE elicited mnemonic and learning improvement effects, which have not been reported in the other studies. [Display omitted]