Pharmacognostic Evaluation and Neuroprotective Potential Of Anastatica Hierochuntica and Pinus Wallichiana in Haloperidol-Induced Catalepsy and Apomorphine-Induced Stereotypy in Wistar Rats

Abstract

This study evaluated the pharmacognostic properties and neuroprotective potential of Anastatica hierochuntica and Pinus wallichiana in Wistar rats using haloperidol-induced catalepsy and apomorphine-induced stereotypy models, complemented by the pole-climbing test. Wistar rats (150–200 g, n=6 per group) were divided into seven groups: control, toxin control (haloperidol 1 mg/kg, i.p., or apomorphine 1.5 mg/kg, s.c.), standard (levodopa 10 mg/kg, i.p., for catalepsy; haloperidol 0.5 mg/kg, i.p., for stereotypy), and low- and high-dose groups for both plant extracts (100 and 200 mg/kg, i.p.). Behavioral assessments on days 7 and 14 revealed that high-dose Anastatica hierochuntica (AH-HD) and Pinus wallichiana (PW-HD) significantly reduced stereotypy duration (AH-HD: 220.0 ± 8.0 s on day 7, 210.0 ± 7.5 s on day 14; PW-HD: 250.0 ± 10.0 s on day 7, 235.0 ± 9.0 s on day 14, p<0.01 vs. toxin control) and likely catalepsy duration, approaching the efficacy of standard drugs. The pole-climbing test suggested improved motor coordination in high-dose groups. These findings indicate that Anastatica hierochuntica and Pinus wallichiana possess dose-dependent neuroprotective effects, possibly mediated by antioxidant and dopaminergic modulation, warranting further mechanistic and clinical investigations.