芍藥（Paeoniae radix）為傳統中醫婦科臨床上常用之解痙及鎮痛中藥，其藥理作用大部份由其主成份芍藥?(Paeoniflorin)所引起。由本研究室先前的實驗發現，芍藥?對福馬林試驗（formalin test）和扭體實驗（writhing response）之致痛反應有抑制作用；對Glutamate 與 NMDA 等所誘發的中樞興奮行為有減緩作用；對NMDA所致海馬迴腦薄片 field-EPSA有抑制作用。本研究進一步探討芍藥?對細胞內鈣離子之影響，結果發現芍藥?可以抑制鉀離子在海馬迴初級培養細胞所引起的鈣離子內流；在KCl(100mM) 和 NMDA(125μM)引起鈣離子內流的實驗中，芍藥?前處理對前二者所引起鈣離子內流的作用具有抑制的效果，此抑制效果約有33%。芍藥?若與NMDA同時投與，亦會抑制由NMDA所引起的鈣離子內流，此抑制效果約有28.4%。而許多文獻指出神經細胞內鈣離子過度增加，會導致神經細胞死亡，本研究發現芍藥?可抑制NMDA所引起神經細胞死亡，故芍藥?可否應用於預防神經細胞因內鈣過度增加所導致之死亡，則有待進一步探討。; Paeoniae radix has been used to relieve spasmodic abdominal pain in traditional Chinese medicine. Paeoniflorine, a major component from paeoniae radix, has several pharmacological effects including antiallergic, antinociceptive, antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory action. In our previous studies, we found that paeoniflorin had antinociceptive effect on both formalin test and writhing response. Besides, paeoniflorin inhibited central excitatory behavior-induced by glutamate and NMDA etc. From our preliminary study, we found that paeoniflorin inhibited KCl-induced calcium influx in primary hippocampal cells. In this study KCl(100mM) and NMDA(125μM) were used to evoke calcium influx. Paeoniflorin pretreatment inhibited the calcium influx induced by KCl. The inhibition percentage was 33%. Whereas, paeoniflorin co administered with NMDA inhibited, the calcium influx evoked by NMDA. The inhibition percentage was 28.4%. Overloading of calcium causes neuronal cell death is reported by many authors. The inhibitor effect of paeoniflorin on KCl- or NMDA-induced calcium influx in neuronal cells implies that the availability of paeoniflorin on protection of neuronal cell death.
