Antidepressant-Like Effects of Dracocephalum moldavica L. in Mouse Models of Immobility Tests

Abstract

The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the antidepressant activity of the ethanolic extracts of "toronjil azul"(Dracocephalum moldavica L.). Methodology: The forced swimming test (FST) and tail suspension test (TST) were performed on CD-1 mice to evaluate the antidepressant activity of the ethanolic extracts. The ethanolic extracts were administered orally at an 80 and 100 mg/kg. The animals were dosed 1, 6 and 24 h before initiating the FST assay and 40 minutes before for the TST assay. Imipramine and fluoxetine were dosed at 15 mg/kg, while the flavonoid quercetin was given an a lower concentration of 10 mg/kg as a positive controls. Results: The extracts of Dracocephalum moldavica L. and significantly decreased the immobility time in the FST and TST assays when compared with the negative control and reported similar values than those obtained with the positive controls. Conclusion: The results obtained indicate that extract of Dracocephalum moldavica L. have antidepressant effect similar to those obtained by.