Bacopa monniera ameliorates amnesic effects of diazepam qualifying behavioral–molecular partitioning

Abstract Benzodiazepines are known to produce amnesia by involvement of GABAergic system and by interference of long term potentiation (LTP). In this study, we examined effect of Bacopa monniera on downstream molecules of LTP after diazepam-induced amnesia in mice. We used a Morris water maze scale for evaluating the effect of Bacopa monniera after screening for muscle coordination by rota rod. The index of acquisition and retrieval was recorded as escape latency time (ELT). Behavioral results showed that Bacopa monniera (120 mg kg−1 oral) significantly reversed diazepam- (1.75 mg kg−1 i.p.) induced amnesia in Morris water maze task. The molecular studies revealed that diazepam upregulated mitogen activated protein kinase (MAP kinase), phosphorylated CREB (pCREB) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), while it downregulated nitrite, nitrate, total nitrite, cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) expression, phosphodiesterase, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) without affecting calmodulin levels. Bacopa monniera suppressed the diazepam induced upregulation of MAP kinase, pCREB and iNOS and attenuated the downregulation of nitrite. It did not affect the cAMP, PDE, nitrate, total nitrite, total CREB level. These behavioral findings displayed the reversal of diazepam-induced amnesia by Bacopa monniera without qualifying the molecular details although some downstream molecules of LTP may be involved.