Effects of Haloperidol, Asenapine and Paliperidone on MK-801-Induced Memory Deterioration in Morris Water Maze and Radial Arm Maze Tests in Mice

Objective: One of the most important problems of schizophrenic patients is the impairment of cognitive functions. Methods: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of haloperidol, asenapine and paliperidone on spatial learning and memory using the Morris water maze (MWM) and radial arm maze (RAM) tests; moreover the effects of haloperidol, asenapine, and paliperidone on MK-801 induced cognitive dysfunction were also evaluated in mice. Results: Both asenapine (0.05 mg/kg) and paliperidone reversed MK-801 induced increment in escape latency in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th acquisition sessions while haloperidol failed to reverse MK-801 induced this effect. Time spent in escape platform's quadrant significantly decreased while the mean distance to platform significantly increased in MK-801 group in the probe trial of MWM test and administration of asenapine and paliperidone significantly reversed MK-801 induced these effects while haloperidol had no effect. MK-801 significantly increased the speed of the animals in probe trial of the MWM test while both asenapine and paliperidone reversed this effect. In the RAM test, MK-801 significantly increased the number of errors in the retention trial and haloperidol failed to reverse this effect. Both asenapine (0.075 mg/kg) and paliperidone reversed MK-801-induced increment in a number of errors and improved MK-801 induced prolongation in latency. Conclusions: The results of this study revealed that MK-801 exerted spatial memory impairment in MWM and RAM tests; haloperidol failed to improve MK-801 induced memory deterioration in mice. Moreover both asenapine and paliperidone improved MK-801 induced spatial learning and memory impairment in the MWM and RAM tests

Effects of homeopathic Anax imperator on behavioural and pain models in mice

Backgound: Homeopathy is a medical theory and practice that asserts that disease can be cured by remedies that produce symptoms in a healthy person similar to those suffered by a patient with a malady

Superior effects of quetiapine compared with aripiprazole and iloperidone on MK-801-induced olfactory memory impairment in female mice

Cognitive dysfunction is commonly observed in schizophrenic patients and the administration of antipsychotic treatments results in different outcomes. Although the typical antipsychotic treatments, such as haloperidol, appear to be unable to improve cognition dysfunction, the atypical antipsychotic drugs (quetiapine, aripiprazole and iloperidone) exert a beneficial effect. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of atypical antipsychotics on olfactory memory in mice, utilizing the social transmission of food preference (STFP) tests to evaluate the effects of drugs on MK-801-induced cognitive dysfunction. Female BALB/c mice were treated with quetiapine (5 and 10 mg/kg), aripiprazole (3 and 6 mg/kg), iloperidone (0.5 and 1 mg/kg) or MK-801 (0.1 mg/kg) alone or concurrently prior to retention sessions of STFP tests. In the STFP tests, quetiapine (10 mg/kg; P<0.05), aripiprazole (3 and 6 mg/kg; P<0.01 and P<0.001, respectively), iloperidone (0.5 and 1 mg/kg; P<0.01 and P<0.001, respectively) and MK-801 (P<0.001) significantly decreased cued/total food eaten (%). Quetiapine (5 mg/kg; P<0.05) significantly increased MK-801-induced decreases in cued/total food eaten (%), while aripiprazole and iloperidone demonstrated no significant effects. The results revealed that all of the drugs disturbed olfactory memory in the naive mice; however, only quetiapine reversed MK-801-induced memory impairment in the STFP test

Effects of olanzapine and clozapine on memory acquisition, consolidation and retrieval in mice using the elevated plus maze test

Clozapine and olanzapine are antipsychotic drugs commonly used to treat schizophrenia and psychosis; however, few studies have investigated their effects on cognitive function using animal models. Thus, the effects of olanzapine and clozapine on memory acquisition, consolidation and retrieval were investigated in naive mice using a modified elevated plus maze (mEPM) task. Olanzapine (0.15 and 0.30 mg/kg) and clozapine (0.5 and 1 mg/kg) were injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) into male Balb-c mice before training, immediately after training or before the second day of the trial. Our results showed that both olanzapine and clozapine disrupted the acquisition of spatial memory. In addition, clozapine impaired the consolidation of spatial memory, while olanzapine had no effect. Furthermore, olanzapine and clozapine significantly disrupted memory retrieval in naive mice. Thus, these results at least suggest that olanzapine can be a superior treatment for schizophrenia compared to clozapine. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Effects of chronic administration of adipokinetic and hypertrehalosemic hormone on animal behavior, BDNF, and CREB expression in the hippocampus and neurogenesis in mice

Neurosecretory cells in corpus cardiacum of insects synthesize a set of hormones that are called adipokinetic, hypertrehalosaemic or hyperprolinaemic, depending on insect in question. This study investigated effects of chronic administration of Anax imperator adipokinetic hormone (Ani-AKH), Libellula auripennis adipokinetic hormone (Lia-AKH), and Phormia-Terra hypertrehalosaemic hormone (Pht-HrTH) on depression, anxiety, analgesy, locomotion in forced swimming (FST), elevated plus-maze (EPM), hot plate, and locomotor activity tests. Ani-AKH (1 and 2 mg/kg), Lia-AKH (1 and 2 mg/kg), and Pht-HrTH (1 and 2 mg/kg) had antidepressant effects in forced swimming test. Lia-AKH (2 mg/kg) and Pht-HrTH (1 and 2 mg/kg) had anxiolytic effects when given chronically in elevated plus-maze test. Ani-AKH (1 and 2 mg/kg) and Pht-HrTH (2 mg/kg) had antinociceptive effects in hot plate test in male balb-c mice. Ani-AKH (2 mg/kg), Lia-AKH (1 and 2 mg/kg), and Pht-HrTH had locomotion-enhancing effects in locomotor activity test in male balb-c mice. Drug treatment significantly increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) response element binding protein (CREB) gene expression levels compared to control levels. Pht-HrTH and Ani-AKH groups had significantly increased numbers of BrdU-labeled cells, while neurodegeneration was lower in the Pht-HrTH group. Our study showed that AKH/RPCH family peptides may be used in treatment of psychiatric illness such as depression and anxiety, in treatment of pain and in diseases related to locomotion system. AKH/RPCH family peptides increase neurotrophic factors in brain and have potential proliferative and neuroprotective effects in hippocampal neurogenesis and neurodegeneration