Sedative-hypnotic-like effect and molecular docking of di-naphthodiospyrol from Diospyros lotus in an animal model

Abstract

Background: Diospyros lotus Linn commonly known as date-plum, or Caucasian persimmon has multiple uses in folk medicine. Various parts of this plant is used for alleviating lumbago, dysponea, hemorrhage, insomnia, and hiccup. The plant extracts possess a variety of biological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, sedative, febrifuge, anti-microbial, vermifuge, and anti-hypertensive.

Aim/hypothesis: The aim of the present work is to investigate the sedative-hypnotic effect of a rare dimeric napthoquione 1 obtained from the chloroform soluble fraction of D. lotus extracts.

Methods: Compound 1, di-naphthodiospyrol at 5, 10, and 15mg/kg intraperitoneal doses was assessed for its in vivo sedative effect in an open-field using a phenobarbitone-induced sleeping time model. The geometry of di-naphthodiospyrol was also optimized with the aid of density functional theory. In addition, molecular docking of compound 1 was performed with the receptor GABA_A.

Results: The animal protocol-based assay showed significant sedative-hypnotic-like effects of compound 1 at various test doses (5, 10, and 15mg/kg i.p.). Docking studies indicated that this compound interacts strongly with important residues in receptor GABA_A.

Conclusions: Results from this investigation reveal that compound 1 possesses sedative-hypnotic- like properties which can be of interest in therapeutic research.

Keywords: Dimeric napthoquione; Molecular docking; Sedative-hypnotic effect.