Korean J Otolaryngol-Head Neck Surg.  2002 Aug;45(8):760-764.

Effect of Saponin, Allopurinol and Nimodipine on Noise Induced Treshold Changes of ABRs in Guinea Pigs

• Park YH
• Min IK
• Nam BH
• Park CI

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Several studies have demonstrated that noise exposure may result in cochlear damage. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of red Korean ginseng saponin (Krg-saponin), allopurinol and nimodipine on the auditory brainstem response (ABR) threshold changes after noise exposure. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Twenty-two healthy guinea pigs (44 ears) were divided into 4 groups; control, Krg-saponin (100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal), allopurinol (50 mg/kg, intraperitoneal) and nimodipine (2 mg/kg, subcutaneous) treated groups. Guinea pigs were exposed to 115 dB, 1500 Hz narrow band noise for 12 hours. ABR threshold shifts were observed for 24 hours after the noise exposure.
RESULTS
Threshold shift after noise exposure was significantly reduced in Krg-saponin, allopurinol and nimodipine-treated groups, and allopurinol showed significantly greater effect on reducing threshold shift than nimodipine. Krg-saponin was less effective than allopurinol but more effective than nimodipine on reducing the threshold shift after noise exposure.
CONCLUSION
The result suggests that the drug could block the formation of free oxygen radicals (FORs) and that scavenge FORs can be most effectively used to attenuate the noise-induced cochlear damage.

Keyword

Noise; Auditory threshold; Saponin; Allopurinol; Nimodipine

MeSH Terms

Allopurinol*
Animals
Auditory Threshold
Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem
Guinea Pigs*
Guinea*
Nimodipine*
Noise*
Panax
Reactive Oxygen Species
Saponins*
Allopurinol
Nimodipine
Reactive Oxygen Species
Saponins