The anxiolytic-like effect of 6-styryl-2-pyrone in mice involves GABAergic mechanism of action

• Published in: Metabolic brain disease 2018-02, Vol.33 (1), p.139-149
• Main Authors: Chaves, Edna Maria Camelo, Honório-Júnior, Jose Eduardo Ribeiro, Sousa, Caren Nádia Soares, Monteiro, Valdécio Silveira, Nonato, Dayanne Terra Tenório, Dantas, Leonardo Pimentel, Lúcio, Ana Silvia Suassuna Carneiro, Barbosa-Filho, José Maria, Patrocínio, Manoel Cláudio Azevedo, Viana, Glauce Socorro Barros, Vasconcelos, Silvânia Maria Mendes
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amino acids; Animals; Anti-Anxiety Agents - pharmacology; Anxiety; Anxiety - drug therapy; Anxiolytics; Behavior, Animal - drug effects; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Diazepam; Diazepam - pharmacology; Dosage; Flumazenil; Flumazenil - pharmacology; gamma-Aminobutyric Acid - metabolism; Glycine; Hippocampus; Hippocampus - drug effects; Imipramine; Imipramine - pharmacology; Male; Metabolic Diseases; Mice; Neostriatum; Neurology; Neurosciences; Oncology; Original Article; Prefrontal cortex; Pyrones - pharmacology; Styrenes - pharmacology; Taurine; γ-Aminobutyric acid
• ISSN: 0885-7490; 1573-7365
• DOI: 10.1007/s11011-017-0139-5

The present work aims to investigate the anxiolytic activity of 6-styryl-2-pyrone (STY), obtained from Aniba panurensis , in behavioral tests and amino acids dosage on male Swiss mice. The animals were treated with STY (1, 10 or 20 mg), diazepam (DZP 1 or 2 mg/kg) or imipramine (IMI 30 mg/kg). Some groups were administered with flumazenil, 30 min before administration of the STYor DZP. The behavioral tests performed were open field, rota rod, elevated plus maze (EPM), hole-board (HB) and tail suspension test (TST). After behavioral tests, these animals were sacrificed and had their prefrontal cortex (PFC), hippocampus (HC) and striatum (ST) dissected for assaying amino acids (aspartate- ASP, glutamate- GLU, glycine- GLY, taurine- TAU and Gamma-aminobutyric acid- GABA). In EPM test, STY or DZP increased the number of entries and the time of permanence in the open arms, but these effects were reverted by flumazenil. In the HB test, STY increased the number of head dips however this effect was blocked by flumazenil. The effects of the STY on amino acid concentration in PFC showed increased GLU, GABA and TAU concentrations. In hippocampus, STY increased the concentrations of all amino acids studied. In striatum, STY administration at lowest dose reduced GLU concentrations, while the highest dosage caused the opposite effect. GLI, TAU and GABA concentrations increased with STY administration at highest doses. In conclusion, this study showed that STY presents an anxiolytic-like effect in behavioral tests that probably is related to GABAergic mechanism of action.