Antidepressant-like effects of fractions, essential oil, carnosol and betulinic acid isolated from Rosmarinus officinalis L.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the antidepressant-like effect of fractions from Rosmarinus officinalis L.: ethyl acetate 1 and 2 (AcOEt1 and 2), hexane (HEX), ethanolic (ET), and essential oil-free (EOF) fractions, as well as essential oil, the isolated compounds carnosol and betulinic acid in the tail suspension test, a predictive test of antidepressant activity. Swiss mice were acutely administered by oral route (p.o.) with fractions, essential oil or isolated compounds, 60 min before the tail suspension test or open-field test. All of them produced a significant antidepressant-like effect: AcOEt1, ET, EOF fractions and essential oil (0.1-100mg/kg, p.o); HEX (0.1-10mg/kg, p.o) and AcOEt2 fraction (0.1-1mg/kg, p.o), carnosol (0.01-0.1mg/kg, p.o.) isolated from the HEX fraction and betulinic acid (10mg/kg, p.o.), isolated from the AcOEt1 and AcOEt2 fractions. No psychostimulant effect was shown in the open-field test, indicating that the effects in the tail suspension test are specific. This study suggests that carnosol and betulinic acid could be responsible for the anti-immobility effect of extracts from R. officinalis.

Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary): A Novel Therapeutic Agent for Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, Anticancer,Antidiabetic, Antidepressant, Neuroprotective, Anti-Inflammatory, and Anti-Obesity Treatment

“…The majorities of these studies involved two tests that are used to model antidepressant like effects in mice-the Tail Suspension Test (TST) and Forced Swimming Test (FST). The administration of rosemary continuously decreased the immobility time of mice in both the TST and the FST, indicating an antidepressantlike effect [31][32][33][34]. Rosemary's antidepressant potential was further bolstered when it was found to decrease exploratory and anhedonic-like behavior in bulbectomized mice [35].…”

“…Rosemary has also been found to increase the concentration of neurotransmitters in the brains of mice [33]. Several compounds in rosemary extract and essential oil are responsible for its antidepressant activity, including carnosol, betulinic acid, ursolic acid, and polyphenols [31,33,34].…”

Influence of acrylamide on the gastric mucosa of adult albino rats and the possible protective role of rosemary

“…It is well known for its use as a spice for the flavoring of foods, but it is gaining interest for its diverse pharmachological properties (Machado et al, 2013). Leaves of R. officinalis L. have antioxidant, antiinflammatory, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective and antibacterial activities (Ahmed and Abdella, 2010;Altinier et al, 2007;Bakirel et al, 2008;Gutierrez et al, 2010;Del Campo et al, 2000).…”

Antidepressant effects of <i>Mentha pulegium</i> in mice

“…Moreover, Daniele et al investigated the antidepressant effect of rosemary essential oil and demonstrated that 1, 8-cineol, found in rosemary essential oil, had antidepressant effect (Machado et al, 2013). Regarding such findings, we can argue that the antidepressant effects of M. pulegium essential oil is due to its main compounds, thymol, carvacrol, and 1, 8-cineol.…”