Abstract
The objectives of the study were to evaluate the analgesic, anxiolytic and sedative-like activities of methanol extract of leaves of Alpinia calcarata Roscoe in mice model. Analgesic activity was investigated using the acetic acid-induced writhing test and formalin-induced paw licking test. In vivo neuropharmacological effects, including anxiolytic and sedative effects were examined by open field, light-dark, elevated plus maze, thiopental sodium-induced sleeping time and hole cross tests behaviors in mice. The extract produced significant (p<0.001) reduction in writhing and licking response in acetic acid-induced writhing and formalin-induced paw licking tests, respectively. Administration at a dose of 400 mg/kg.bw of leaves extract significantly (p<0.001) attenuated anxiety-like behavior in mice by decreasing movement in open field, increasing the time spent and number of entries in the open arms of elevated plus maze, and a significant increase in the time spent in the illuminated compartment in the light box in the light-dark test. The extract significantly (p<0.01) potentiated thiopental sodium-induced sleep and reduced the number of sectional crossings relative to the control group, indicating sedative effects. Based on the results obtained from in vivo activities, the leaves of A. calcarata was found to be a potential source of new analgesic, anxiolytic and sedative compounds. Key words: Alpinia calcarata, Swiss albino mice, analgesic, anxiolytic, sedative  
Highlights
The genus Alpinia belongs to the family Zingiberaceae, and has long been used for many decades for medicinal and non-medicinal purposes
Acetic acid induced writhing test and formalin-induced hind paw licking test were performed as peripheral models of pain
In acetic acid induced writhing test, significant inhibition of nocifensive behaviors were observed at highest extract dose (59.82%) as compared to aspirin (75.76%)
Summary
The genus Alpinia belongs to the family Zingiberaceae, and has long been used for many decades for medicinal and non-medicinal purposes. Plants of this genus have extensively been reported by several research studies for their potential biological activities. Fruit extract of Alpinia oxyphylla showed the presence of yakuchinone-A (Oonmetta-aree et al, 2006) and norcardinane (Muraoka et al, 2001) possessing cardiotonic effect; kernel of the plant contains protocatechuic acid having neuroprotective effect (An et al, 2006) and diarylheptanoids produce antiinflammatory effect (Chun et al, 2002).
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