Effects of acute administration of valeriana officinalis extract in wistar rats submitted to stress

Entre Anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder affect a considerable part of the population and can cause manifestations of fear and anxiety. Pharmacological treatment is based on the use of benzodiazepines and antidepressants and has limitations. In this sense, the search for effective and safer treatments is necessary. Valeriana officinalis is a plant widely used to treat stress, insomnia and anxiety states. Valerenic acid is a compound that have demonstrated a sedative effect through GABA-like activity.This study aimed to evaluate the behavioral effects of the acute administration of V. officinalis extract in male Wistar rats submitted to the modified forced swimming model. The animals were divided into 4 groups (n = 8), treated via gavage, as follows: G1 and G2 – treated with saline; G3 and G4 – treated respectively with extract of V. officinalis at doses of 22 and 66 mg/Kg. For stress induction, groups G2, G3 and G4 were submitted to swimming. All groups had their behavior evaluated in the elevated plus maze model. Behavior evaluation showed that swimming was adequate to induce anxiety in animals. However, at the doses used, the administration of V. officinalis extract was not able to attenuate the levels of anxiety.