PURPOSE: To provide a cranial nerve cell protecting agent containing a specific compound as an active component, effective for remarkably suppressing the death of nerve cell induced by glutamic acid, having cranial nerve cell protecting action and useful for the prevention and treatment of cerebral thrombosis, cerebral infarction, dementia, etc.
CONSTITUTION: This protecting agent contains a compound of formula I [R1 to R5 are each H or OH; R6 is an (OH-substituted)alkyl], e.g. 20-hydroxyecdyson of formula II as an active component. The compound of formula I, especially a natural ecdysteroid can be produced, e.g. by extracting a plant such as paffia or anthotaxis with water or a hydrophilic solvent, adjusting the extracted liquid to alkaline state, treating with a reversed phase adsorbent, washing the reversed phase adsorbent with an alkaline washing liquid to remove impurities, eluting the component adsorbed to the reversed phase adsorbent and crystallizing from the eluate. The daily administration dose of the compound of formula I for adult is preferably l mg to 1 g for oral administration and 0.1mg to 1g for injection.
MATSUMOTO TAKESHI
YAMAGUCHI YUKIHARU
