Many terpenes are used therapeutically, and as flavor and fragrance materials. (R)-(-)-Carvone, the main constituent of spearmint oil, and (S)-(+)-carvone, found as major component of caraway and dill seed oils, have several applications and are used in cosmetic, food, and pharmaceutical preparations. In this study, the effect of enantiomers of carvone on the central nervous system (CNS) was evaluated in mice. The LD50 value was 484.2 mg/kg (358.9-653.2) for (S)-(+)-carvone, and 426.6 (389.0-478.6) mg/kg for (R)-(-)-carvone. Both enantiomers caused depressant effects, such as decrease in the response to the touch and ambulation, increase in sedation, palpebral ptosis, and antinociceptive effects. (S)-(+)- and (R)-(-)-carvone caused a significant decrease in ambulation. (R)-(-)-Carvone appeared to be more effective than its corresponding enantiomer at 0.5 and 2.0 h after administration. However, (S)-(+)-carvone was slightly more potent at 1 h. In potentiating pentobarbital sleeping time, (R)-(-)-carvone was more effective than (S)-(+)-carvone at 100 mg/kg, but was less potent at 200 mg/kg compared to the (+)-enantiomer, indicating a sedative action. (S)-(+)-Carvone at the dose of 200 mg/kg increased significantly the latency of convulsions induced by PTZ and PIC, but (R)-(-)-carvone was not effective against these convulsions. These results suggest that (S)-(+)-carvone and (R)-(-)-carvone have depressant effect in the CNS. (S)-(+)-Carvone appears to have anticonvulsant-like activity.

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The acute treatment of mice with an ethanolic extract from the seed pod of Dioclea grandiflora (EDgP) at doses of 75, 150 and 300 mg/kg by intraperitoneal administration produced a significant antinociceptive effect as displayed by the acetic acid-induced writhing test and the formalin test. The antinociception was observed through the first (neurogenic pain) and second (inflammatory pain) phases in the formalin test. The hot plate test did not show an increase in the antinociceptive latency whereas the motor performance was affected by the administration at 300 mg/kg at the beginning (30 minutes) of the observation period but not at later periods (60 and 120 minutes). These results suggest that EDgP has a central antinociceptive action and a possible anti-inflammatory activity in mice.

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O VNO (Vírus do Nilo Ocidental) é um flavivírus agente etiológico da zoonose Febre do Nilo Ocidental. É transmitido por mosquitos do gênero Culex, e as aves são os principais reservatórios do vírus. Essa virose é responsável por uma encefalite que nos casos mais graves pode acarretar sequelas permanentes e chegar ao óbito. No ano de 2014 foi registrado o primeiro caso de infecção pelo vírus do Nilo Ocidental em humanos em território nacional, comprovando que o vírus já circula no nosso país. Ainda não existe vacina ou medicamentos específicos contra o VNO e o combate à doença é focado no monitoramento dos reservatórios (aves e animais domésticos), combate ao inseto vetor e tratamento paliativo dos acometidos. Neste contexto, essa proposta de pesquisa tem como objetivo selecionar compostos que possam ser utilizados como fármacos antivirais, utilizando como molécula alvo a proteína de replicação viral NS5. Palavras-chave: Flavivírus; produtos naturais; bioinformática; docking.