Background & objectives: Origanum Vulgare is an herbal plant which is widely distributed in the north and northwest parts of Iran and posses therapeutic properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of aqueous extract of Origanum Vulgare L. ssp. viride on pain threshold in male rats.

  Methods: In this study,�28 Male Wistar rats (200-250 g) were divided randomly into 4 groups (n=7) . Rats were anaesthetized with a mixture of ketamine and xylazine and placed in stereotaxic apparatus. A guide cannula was inserted into ventricular area, according to the atlas of Paxinos and Watson. One week after surgery , three groups of rats received microinjection of Origanum extract (1, 3, 6µg/rat). Controls received the microinjection of the same volume of saline. Tail flick latency (TFL) was used to assess the nociceptive response each 15 min for 120 min, using tail flick test. The results were analyzed by repeated measurement test. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the mean values of quantitative variable among the groups. The data are expressed as mean ± SEM. p < 0.05 was considered significant.

  Results: Intracerebroventricular administration of the Origanum extract resulted in significant and dose-dependent increase in TFL compared to controls (p<0.05). Origanum extract at dose of 3µg/rat showed the highest analgesic response. The maximum analgesic response was observed at 60 min and 90 min post extract injection (p<0.05).

  Conclusion: These results suggest that the ICV injection of aqueous extract of Origanum Vulgare possesses dose- dependent antinociceptive activities in the tail flick test in rats.

 Background and Objectives: Opiodergic system has important role in pain control. Origanum vulgare is a folk medicine with analgesic properties which is widely distributed in the north and northwest parts of Iran. The mechanism of therapeutic effects of Origanum vulgare is not understood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the intervention effect of opioid agonist (morphine) and antagonist (naloxone) on analgesic effects of Origanum vulgare.

 Methods: In this study 28 Male Wistar rats (200-250 g) were used (n=7). The rats were anaesthetized by ketamine (80mg /kg) and xylazine (10mg /kg) and a cannula was inserted into the left ventricle according to atlas of Paxinos characteristics using stereotaxic apparatus. The animals were allowed to recover for 5-7 days .In pilot examination, the effective dose of ORG extract determined 3µg/rat i.c.v. Rats were divided into 4 groups:Control group given saline 0.5ml.i.p/ saline 5µl.i.c.v or ORG 3µg/rat.i.c.v. other groups are morphine (2mg/kg ,i.p) and ORG3µg/rat,i.c.v , Naloxone (1mg/kg,i.p) and ORG 3µg/rat,i.c.v. The latency response of rats to thermal stimulation was recorded (30, 45, 60, 75, 90 &120 min after treatment) by Tail flick test. Repeated Measurement test and ANOVA were used to determine significant differences.

 Results: There was significant decrease in the pain threshold following the co-administration of ORG extract with naloxone in the Tail flick test. There also was significant decrease in the latency response or pain threshold 90 and 120 min after intervention in naloxone group compared with that in control group (p< 0.05).

 Conclusion: The results of this study showed that analgesic effect of aqueous extract of Origanum vulgare may be mediated, at least in part, by opioidergic system.

  Background & Objectives: I ntra-hippocampal adminestration of origanum (ORG) improves spatial learning of rats. T he aim of the present study was to investigate the possible mechanism for origanum extract on spatial learning and memory in the hippocampus.

  Methods : In this study 42 adult male Wistar rats were used . Animals were cannulated bilaterally in the posterior laterl of hippocampus. After the recovery period, the spatial learning and memory were assessed using Morris Water Maze (MWM). Saline, ORG (0.03μg/site) glutamate receptor antagonist MK801 (0.08, 0.2 and 0.4 μmol/site) and co-injected of MK + ORG was injected into the posterior lateral of hippocampus 20 minutes before the training and retrival sesions (for 5 consecutive days) (n=7).

  Results: The results showed that the intra-hippocampal injection of MK 801 significantly blocked the decreased distance and time of reaching (due to ORG injection) to find hidden platform of MWM (p<0.05). On the retrival tests, the average of time spent in the target area is reduced in the co-injected of MK801 + ORG group.

  Conclusion: The intra-hippocampal injection of aqueous extract of�origanum may improve working memory in rats through glutamate-dependent NMDA receptors.