We assessed the effect of oral treatment of a standardized herbal tablet containing combined extract of Bacopa monnieri and Ficus racemosa for their in vivo antiamnesic activity along with in vitro anticholinesterase and antioxidant activities. The cognition-enhancing effect of herbal tablet was investigated in scopolamine-induced (1 mg/kg body weight, s.c.) amnesic mice with both passive avoidance and Morris water maze performance tests, while anticholinesterase effect was measured by spectrophotometric Ellman method at 0.25, 0.50, 1.0, and 2.0 mg/ml and antioxidant activity was assessed by scavenging effect against 2,2- diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH). Acute oral treatment (single administration prior to scopolamine treatment) of mice with herbal tablet (doses 300 and 600 mg/kg body weight) significantly reduced scopolamine-induced memory deficits in the passive avoidance performance test. In the Morris water maze performance test, both acute and prolonged oral treatments with herbal tablet (single administration of 600 mg/kg body weight or prolonged daily administration of 1 and 10 mg/kg body weight for ten days, respectively, significantly ameliorated scopolamine- induced memory deficits as indicated by the formation of long-term and/or short- term spatial memory. In the anticholinesterase assay, the herbal tablet (600 mg/kg) showed highest inhibitions (65.8% at 1.0 mg/ml) against acetylcholinesterase. Concerning the antioxidant effect, herbal tablet at both doses (300 and 600 mg/kg) exerted the highest activity having IC50 values between 0.227 and 0.428 mg/ml.
