[Pharmacological studies of reiousan which contains bezoar and ginseng: III. Effects on experimental cerebral...

Pharmacological effects of Reiousan, a crude drug preparation consisting of bezoar and ginseng, on experimental cerebral ischemia and anoxia were studied. After administration of Reiousan, the survival time of mice subjected to hypobaric hypoxia and the gasping duration of isolated rat head tended to increase. Reiousan inhibited all the following: lipid peroxides production in rat brain homogenate, tissue swelling induced by the xanthine-xanthine oxidase system in rat brain cortical slices, rat brain swelling induced by freezing, lipid peroxides production in the rat brain after ligation of bilateral common carotid arteries, and lipid peroxides production in Mongolian gerbil brain after reperfusion following ligation of bilateral common carotid arteries. These effects may result from antioxidant activity of bilirubin, a constituent of bezoar.