Scientific Research on Maharishi Ayurveda

neurophysiology > neurophysiology study 2

Neurophysiology and Intelligence Study #2

Title
Effect of Herbal Mixture Student Rasayana on Lipoxygenase Activity and Lipid Peroxidation

Publication
Free Radical Biology and Medicine, Vol. 18, No. 4, pp. 687-697, 1995.

Authors
Hari M. Sharma, Atef N. Hanna, Ellen M. Kauffman, and Howard A.I. Newman.

Conducted at
Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH

Summary
There is evidence that suggests a relationship among free radicals, brain injury, and brain functionality. The scavenging of free radicals as a possible mechanism for the improvement in intelligence by Student Rasayana (SR) was explored in this study on the effect of SR on lipid peroxidation and lipoxygenase activity. SR inhibited enzymatic- and nonenzymatic-induced rat liver microsomal lipid peroxidation in a concentration-dependent manner (p<0.05). SR also inhibited soyabean lipoxygenase-induced LDL oxidation in vitro (p<0.05). In vivo, SR inhibited toluene-induced rat brain microsomal lipid peroxidation (p<0.05).

An interesting finding in this study is that an alcoholic extract of SR increased in vitro a metabolite of arachidonic acid which enhances long-term potentiation, a process associated with learning.

Thus, SR may protect brain functions and increase intelligence through scavenging of free radicals and/or increasing certain metabolites of arachidonic acid.

For more information on this study, see Research on Reduction of Chemical Toxicity and Antioxidant Research.