| Bioactivity | Gelsemine, an alkaloid from the Chinese herb Gelsemium elegans, is effective in mitigating chronic pain. Antinociceptive effects. |
| In Vivo | Gelsemine is an effective agent for treatment of both neuropathic pain and sleep disturbance in partial sciatic nerve ligation (PSNL) mice. Gelsemine (4 mg/kg) exerts analgesic effects on PSNL-induced mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia. In PSNL mice, Gelsemine (2 and 4 mg/kg) increases the mechanical threshold for 4 h and prolonged the thermal latencies for 3 h. Furthermore, Gelsemine (4 mg/kg, administered at 6:30 AM) increases non-rapid eye movement (non-REM, NREM) sleep, decreases wakefulness, but does not affect rapid eye movement (REM) sleep during the first 3 h in PSNL mice[1]. Immunohistochemical study shows that PSNL increases c-Fos expression in the neurons of the anterior cingulate cortex, and Gelsemine (4 mg/kg) decreases c-Fos expression by 58%[1]. |
| Name | Gelsemine |
| CAS | 509-15-9 |
| Formula | C20H22N2O2 |
| Molar Mass | 322.40 |
| Appearance | Solid |
| Transport | Room temperature in continental US; may vary elsewhere. |
| Storage | 4°C, sealed storage, away from moisture and light *In solvent : -80°C, 6 months; -20°C, 1 month (sealed storage, away from moisture and light) |
| Reference | [1]. Wu YE, et al. Gelsemine alleviates both neuropathic pain and sleep disturbance in partial sciatic nerve ligation mice. Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2015 Nov;36(11):1308-17. |