Anxiolytic-like effects of noribogaine in zebrafish.
Behavioural brain research – July 14, 2017
Source: PubMed
Summary
Noribogaine, a compound being explored for its role in addressing drug abuse, shows promising effects in reducing anxiety. In a recent investigation, zebrafish exposed to noribogaine displayed behaviors indicating significantly less anxiety, such as spending more time in the upper parts of their tank and fewer freezing episodes. Crucially, their normal movement remained unaffected. This suggests noribogaine could serve as a valuable non-sedative agent for managing anxiety.
Abstract
Noribogaine is the main psychoactive metabolite of the hallucinogenic drug ibogaine, and is a particularly interesting compound potentially useful to treat dependence and various psychiatric disorders. Here, we report the effects of noribogaine on anxiety and locomotion in zebrafish (Danio rerio), a new promising model organism in neurobehavioral and psychopharmacological research. Adult zebrafish were subjected to the 5min novel tank test (NTT) following an acute, 20-min drug immersion in 1, 5 and 10mg/L noribogaine. Overall, noribogaine produced robust anxiolytic-like behavior in zebrafish (increasing the time spent and transitions to the top half compartment and reducing freezing bouts) without overt effects on fish locomotion. Taken together, these results indicate that noribogaine modulates the components of the acute stress response related to emotionality and anxiety behaviors, implicating this drug as a potentially useful non-sedative anxiolytic agent.