Comparative effects of traditional Chinese and Western migraine medicines in an animal model of nociceptive trigeminovascular activation.
Background Migraine is a highly prevalent and disabling disorder of the brain with limited therapeutic options, particularly for preventive treatment. There is a need to identify novel targets and test their potential efficacy in relevant preclinical migraine models. Traditional Chinese medicines have been used for millennia and may offer avenues for exploration. Methods We evaluated two traditional Chinese medicines, gastrodin and ligustrazine, and compared them to two Western approaches with propranolol and levetiracetam, one effective and one ineffective, in an established in vivo rodent model of nociceptive durovascular trigeminal activation. Results Intravenous gastrodin (30 and 100 mg/kg) significantly inhibited nociceptive dural-evoked neuronal firing in the trigeminocervical complex. Ligustrazine (10 mg/kg) and propranolol (3 mg/kg) also significantly inhibited dural-evoked trigeminocervical complex responses, although the timing of responses of ligustrazine does not match its pharmacokinetic profile. Levetiracetam had no effects on trigeminovascular responses. Conclusion Our data suggest gastrodin has potential as an anti-migraine treatment, whereas ligustrazine seems less promising. Interestingly, in line with clinical trial data, propranolol was effective and levetiracetam not. Exploration of the mechanisms and modelling effects of Chinese traditional therapies offers novel route for drug discovery in migraine.
['Zhao|Yonglie|Y|', 'Martins-Oliveira|Margarida|M|', 'Akerman|Simon|S|', 'Goadsby|Peter J|PJ|']
D000818:Animals D001592:Benzyl Alcohols D004195:Disease Models, Animal D004388:Dura Mater D005960:Glucosides D000077287:Levetiracetam D008297:Male D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional D008881:Migraine Disorders D009475:Neurons, Afferent D059226:Nociceptive Pain D059408:Pain Management D011433:Propranolol D011719:Pyrazines D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley D014276:Trigeminal Nerve
migraine Gastrodin ligustrazine trigeminocervical complex headache