Introduction: The current study aimed at investigating the role of Nitric Oxide (NO) in the maintenance of anxiety and depression induced by stress in male Wistar rats using intra-Basolateral Amygdala (BLA) injection of NO precursor, L-arginine, Nitric Oxide Synthase (NOS) inhibitor, and L-NAME.  Methods: Two 23-gauge stainless steel cannulas were placed in the BLA, stereotaxically. Seven days...

To investigate the long-term effects of psychological stress on emotionality, the emotional arousal of rats in 4 months after predator stress was assessed in both an open field environment and elevated plus maze. We also assessed the levels of plasma corticosterone (CORT) by radioimmunoassay, the distributions of brain glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) by immunohi...

Rodents forced to swim in a narrow space from which there is no escape will, after an initial period of vigorous activity, adopt a characteristic immobile posture, making only those movements necessary to keep their heads above the water. It was hypothesized that immobility reflected the animals' having learned that escape was impossible and their having given up hope. Immobility was therefore ...

Punarnavine (20 and 40 mg/kg) and fluoxetine (20 mg/kg) per se administered orally for 14 successive days significantly decreased immobility periods of both unstressed and stressed mice in forced swim test. These drugs also significantly decreased sucrose preference in both stressed and unstressed mice as compared to their respective controls, indicating significant antidepressant-like activity...

The purpose of the present study was to analyze the effect of a lighting stress on the fluctuating asymmetry (FA), the heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, and the tonic immobility duration of chickens. The experiment (440 birds) measured the FA of several traits (outer, middle, inner, and hind toe lengths and leg, wing, second primary feather, and spur lengths), the heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, ...

The present study evaluated 17beta-estradiol (17betaE(2)) (2.5 mg/kg sc) effects on bilateral OBX-induced behavioral changes and oxidative stress. OBX in male Wistar rats produced an increase in lipid peroxidation products and a decline in reduced glutathione (GSH) content and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, together with an increase in caspase-3 activity. Additionally, OBX triggered ...

withania somnifera (ws) possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. ws preparations have a potential therapeutic role in the central nervous system (cns) related disorders in animal models. in this study, the possible protective effect of acute aqueous ws root extract on behavioral despair was explored and compared with fluoxetine, an antidepressant with selective serotonin (5-ht) reu...