Hypnotic Effect of Rosa damascena in Mice

Rosa damascena (Rosaceae) has been found to act on central nervous system including the brain. Several studies confirm that Rosa damascena inhibits the reactivity of the hypothalamus and pituitary systems in rat and can suppress the reactivity of central nervous system. In traditional medicine the hypnotic effect of rose is also suggested. In the present study hypnotic effect of ethanolic, aqueous and chloroformic extracts of Rosa damascena was investigated in mice. Hypnotic method was based on potentiation of pentobarbital induced sleeping time by extracts. Three doses of extracts (100, 500 and 1000 mg/kg) were injected intraperitoneally in comparison with diazepam (3 mg/kg) as the positive control and saline as the negative control. Thirty min after injection of extracts, pentobarbital (30 mg/kg) was injected and any increase in the sleeping time due to the extracts was recorded. Results showed that the ethanolic and aqueous extracts in doses of 500 and 1000 mg/kg significantly increased the pentobarbital induced sleeping time (P<0.001, compared to the negative control), which was comparable to diazepam. The chloroformic extract showed no hypnotic effect.