Compounds from Mentha aquatica with affinity to the GABA-benzodiazepine receptor

Mentha aquatica L. is used in Zulu traditional medicine for spiritual purposes and an ethanolic leaf extract has previously shown strong affinity to the GABA-benzodiazepine receptor. Viridiflorol from the essential oil and (S)-naringenin from an ethanolic extract was isolated by bioassay-guided fractionation using binding to the GABA-benzodiazepine site. Viridiflorol had an IC50 of 0.19 M and (S)-naringenin of 0.0026 M.