Potentiating effect of glabridin from Glycyrrhiza glabra on GABAA receptors.

ABSTRACT: Extracts from Glycyrrhiza are traditionally used for the treatment of insomnia and anxiety. Glabridin is one of the main flavonoid compounds from Glycyrrhiza glabra and displays a broad range of biological properties. In the present work, we investigated the effect of glabridin on GABAA receptors. For this purpose, we employed the two-electrode voltage-clamp technique on Xenopus laevis oocytes expressing recombinant GABAA receptors. Through this approach, we observed that glabridin presents a strong potentiating effect on GABAA α1β(1-3)γ2 receptors. The potentiation was slightly dependent on the β subunit and was most pronounced at the α1β2γ2 subunit combination, which forms the most abundant GABAA receptor in the CNS. Glabridin potentiated with an EC50 of 6.3±1.7 µM and decreased the EC50

SUBMITTER: Hoffmann KM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5689168 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature