CHAPEL HILL, N.C.--Flowers from a plant called St. John's wort, which is used to treat mild to moderate depression in Europe, also reduce alcohol intake in laboratory animals, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers have discovered. The plant's active ingredient, hypericin, might prove effective in the fight against alcoholism, the scientists say.
"This is exciting - and simple -- because St. John's wort already is the most often prescribed antidepressant in Germany," said Dr. Amir H. Rezvani, research associate professor of psychiatry at the UNC-CH School of Medicine. "It is reported to be as effective as Prozac and produce fewer side effects."
Rezvani presented his findings Tuesday (June 23) in Hilton Head, S.C., at the annual meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism. He also will present them in Copenhagen next week at a meeting of the International Society of Biomedical Research on Alcoholism.
St. John's wort, or Hypericum perforatrum, grows wild in Europe, western Asia, North Africa and in North America, particularly the Pacific Northwest, he said. It is a common wildflower with vivid yellow flowers edged with tiny black beads. When rubbed, the plant releases a red pigment containing hypericin.
The UNC-CH experiments involved rats that were selectively bred to prefer alcohol. When given a choice, such rats will consume little water, but much alcohol, said Rezvani, also adjunct associate professor of social medicine.
"In one set of experiments, we gave the compound to the rats by mouth and then gave them free access to water and alcohol for 24 hours," the scientist said. "We then measured their alcohol intake every two hours, and found that those receiving the compound drank less, about 50 percent less than the untreated animals."
Rezvani and his colleagues at the SkipperBowles Center for Alcohol
Studies got the same results with two different strains of rodents -- P rats
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Contact: David L. Williamson
rdtokids@email.unc.edu
919-962-8596
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
23-Jun-1998