Evaluation of the possible prophylactic role of ketamine in anxiety induced by social defeat in mice

• Grant number: 18/12611-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2018
• End date: October 31, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Neuropsychopharmacology
• Principal Investigator: Cleopatra da Silva Planeta
• Grantee: Natália Urel Carneiro
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas (FCFAR). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Several evidences in the literature have demonstrated the deleterious effects that acute and chronic stress can trigger in individuals. The emergence of depression and anxiety disorder are possible consequences of these effects. The social defeat (SD) stress is an animal model that can be used to investigate the effects of acute and chronic stress on anxiety-related behavior in mice submitted to the elevated plus maze test (EPM). Recently, ketamine has been investigated as an alternative to the classical depression treatments and to the anxiety disorders, like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. There is evidences that this NMDA receptor antagonist has prophylactic effect in clinical and animal models of depression induced by SD. However, the ketamine preventive role in animal models of anxiety induced by SD stress is not fully elucidated. Thus, according to the literature evidences, the hypothesis of this proposal is that the ketamine has a prophylactic effect on the alteration of anxiety-like behaviors in socially defeated mice exposed to the EPM. Therefore, the purpose of this research project is to investigate if ketamine (i.p.) at different doses (1,10 or 100 mg/kg) prevents the effects of a single and/or five social defeats in mice submitted to EPM. Considering this, on the first experiment, male mice weighing between 30 and 40 will be distributed in 8 experimental groups and treated with saline or ketamine (1,10 or 100 mg/kg). After 24 hours, half of the animals will be submitted to a single session of SD. After five minutes, the animals of the 8 groups will be submitted to EPM. The second experiment is similar to the first one, although, the subjects will be submitted to five alternated days of SD stress and will be exposed to EPM five minutes after the last SD session.