page_title: Honokiol
section_title: GABAA modulation
hierarchical_section_title: Honokiol / Western medical research / Pharmacology / Cytotoxicity inhibition / GABAA modulation
caption_attribution_description: English: Binding sites of different therapeutic chemical groups on a GABAA receptor
context_page_description: Honokiol is a lignan isolated from the bark, seed cones, and leaves of trees belonging to the genus Magnolia. It has been identified as one of the chemical compounds in some traditional eastern herbal medicines along with magnolol, 4-O-methylhonokiol, and obovatol.
context_section_description: It is believed that honokiol acts on GABAA receptors similarly to benzodiazepines and Z-drugs. However, honokiol has been shown to achieve anxiolysis with fewer motor or cognitive side effects than GABAA receptor agonists such as flurazepam and diazepam. It has been shown that honokiol likely has a higher selectivity for different GABAA receptor subtypes and both magnolol and honokiol showed higher efficacy when acting on receptors containing δ subunits. GABAA receptors control ligand-gated Cl⁻ channels that can help increase seizure thresholds through the influx of chloride anions.
  Honokiol may also affect the synthesis of GABA. In a study where mice received seven daily injections of honokiol, researchers observed a significant increase in hippocampal levels of glutamate decarboxylase (GAD)(67) a precursor to GABA.
caption: GABAA receptor binding sites
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