Anti-Fatigue Effect of Aqueous Extract of Anisomeles indica (L) Kuntze in Mice

Purpose: To determine the anti-fatigue effect of Anisomeles indica (L.) Kuntze, an herb traditionally used for health improvement in Taiwan.
Methods: Three groups (n = 10 per group) of Balb/c female mice were administered A. indica aqueous extract orally for 28 days at 125 (low dose A. indica, LA), 250 (medium dose A. indica, MA), and 500 (high dose A. indica, HA) mg/kg/day, respectively, while a control group received distilled water. After 28 days, a forced swimming test was performed, and biochemical parameters including plasma triglyceride (TG), glucose, lactate and ammonia levels related to fatigue were examined.
Results: No mice died during the study period. Physical examinations did not reveal any treatmentrelated adverse effects after dosing, in terms of food and water consumption. Moreover, no obvious peptic ulcers, haemorrhage, or pathological changes in the liver or kidney were observed in A. indica-treated mice, and there were no significant differences in body weight between the control and treatment groups (p > 0.05). Mice treated with A. indica extract in the MA and HA groups showed significantly prolonged exhaustive swimming time (p < 0.05), increased hepatic glycogen and muscle glycogen levels (p < 0.05), and decreased triglyceride and plasma ammonia levels (p < 0.05) in a dosedependent manner, compared with the controls. However, plasma glucose and lactic acid levels were not significantly changed (p > 0.05).
Conclusion: These results provide the first in vivo evidence supporting the anti-fatigue claims associated with A. indica treatment, indicating that this traditional herb may be of therapeutic use as an ergogenic and anti-fatigue agent.

Keywords
Anisomeles indica; Exhaustive swimming test; Fatigue; Glycogen; Plasma ammonia; Lactic acid