Alleviation of menopausal symptoms by C. racemosa

描述(申请人提供)：潮热是更年期最常见的症状，会引起极度不适并扰乱睡眠模式。更年期期间的抑郁和情绪变化也会影响生活质量。激素疗法是更年期症状的主要治疗方法，与乳腺癌和子宫内膜癌的风险增加有关。大多数更年期妇女拒绝或未能遵守激素治疗，这表明有必要进行替代治疗。黑升麻是一种在几个小型临床试验中被证明能有效减少更年期潮热的植物，它不含雌激素化合物，但确实含有5-羟色胺受体的激动剂。我们的假设是，黑升麻通过5-羟色胺能作用缓解动物模型中的潮热和抑郁。目的1通过植入温度传感器的去卵巢大鼠模型，验证黑升麻提取物缓解潮热的假说。目的2旨在通过强迫游泳实验建立抑郁症动物模型，提供可靠的行为学数据来支持黑升麻的抗抑郁活性。目的3将在神经细胞培养模型中测试雌激素治疗对更年期主诉的影响是否通过调节5-羟色胺的作用而发生。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Hot flashes, the most common symptom of menopause, cause extreme discomfort and disrupt sleep patterns. Depression and mood changes during menopause also compromise quality of life. Hormone therapy, the primary treatment for menopausal symptoms, is associated with increased risk of breast and endometrial cancer. The majority of menopausal women refuses or fails to comply with hormone therapy, suggesting the need for alternative treatments. Black cohosh, a plant which has proven effective in reducing menopausal hot flashes in several small clinical trials, does not contain estrogenic compounds, but does contain agonists for serotonin receptors. Our hypothesis is that black cohosh alleviates hot flashes and depression in animal models through serotonergic action. Aim 1 will test the hypothesis that black cohosh extracts alleviate hot flashes using an ovariectomized rat model implanted with thermosensors. Aim 2 is designed to deliver solid behavioral data to support the antidepressant activity of black cohosh through the Forced Swim Test animal model of depression. Aim 3 will test the possibility that effects of estrogen therapy on menopausal complaints occur through modulation of serotonin action in a neuronal cell culture model.