Antidepressant Activity Screening for the Different Separated Fractions from Chinese Herbal Compound Bugansan

OBJECTIVE To study the antidepressant effect of the different separated fractions from the ethanol extract of Bugansan. METHODS The stimulus on chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model lasted 8 weeks. From the 4th week, the mice were intragastric administration with 4 kinds of polar extractions from the ethanol extract of Bugansan, petroleumether fraction (A), dichloromethane fraction (B), ethyl acetate fraction (C), N-butanol fraction (D) or paroxetine hydrochloride (PX) according to their groups for 4 weeks. The changes of performance and the neurotransmiffer content were measured. RESULTS The results showed that the performance of mice treated with PX (0.026 g·kg^-1), the ethanol extract of Bugansan (1.92 g·kg^-1), the ethyl acetate fraction C (0.232 g·kg^-1), the butyl alcohol fraction D (1.04 g·kg^-1) and the dichloromethane fraction B (0.160 g·kg^-1) was improved significantly, with the consumption of sucrose increased and the forced swimming time reduced. The contents of 5-HT and dopamine in the frontal cortex of mice in groups treated with the ethanol extract of Bugansan and its fraction were all increased to various degrees, and the PX and the ethanol extract of Bugansan and its fraction C increased most appreciably (P<0.05 or <0.01). CONCLUSION The ethyl acetate fraction and the N-butanol fraction from Bugansan are chosen as the first active parts having antidepressant effect, and the dichloromethane fraction is the second.