ArticleThe international journal of neuropsychopharmacology2016
Effects of the Synthetic Neurosteroid: 3β-Methoxypregnenolone (MAP4343) on Behavioral and Physiological Alterations Provoked by Chronic Psychosocial Stress in Tree Shrews.
Article in The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- An exploration of the relationships between the effects of psilocybin on behavior, 5-HTJournal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2026Article
- Study of tree shrew biology and models: A booming and prosperous field for biomedical research.Zoological research · 2024Review
- Chronic MAP4343 reverses escalated alcohol drinking in a mouse model of alcohol use disorder.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2023Article
- Alterations of Dopamine Receptors and the Adaptive Changes of L-Type Calcium Channel Subtypes Regulate Cocaine-Seeking Habit in Tree Shrew.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Therapeutic potential of pregnenolone and pregnenolone methyl ether on depressive and CDKL5 deficiency disorders: Focus on microtubule targeting.Journal of neuroendocrinology · 2022Review
- Social avoidance behavior in male tree shrews and prosocial behavior in male mice toward unfamiliar conspecifics in the laboratory.Zoological research · 2020Article
- Microtubules: A Key to Understand and Correct Neuronal Defects in CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder?International journal of molecular sciences · 2019Review
- Neuroprotective Approach of Anti-Cancer Microtubule Stabilizers Against Tauopathy Associated Dementia: Current Status of Clinical and Preclinical Findings.Journal of Alzheimer's disease reports · 2019Review
- Neurosteroid Actions in Memory and Neurologic/Neuropsychiatric Disorders.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2019Review
- Steroids and Brain, a Rising Bio-Medical Domain: a Perspective.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2018Article
- Potential Role of Microtubule Stabilizing Agents in Neurodevelopmental Disorders.International journal of molecular sciences · 2017Review
- Chronic psychosocial stressors in adulthood: Studies in mice, rats and tree shrews.Neurobiology of stress · 2017Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMost currently available active antidepressant drugs are selective serotonin/noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors. However, as their clinical efficacy is not immediate, long-term administration is often accompanied by substantial side effects, and numerous patients remain non- or partial responders. We have recently found that the synthetic neurosteroid derivative 3β-methoxypregnenolone, which binds to the microtubule-associated protein-2, can provide a novel therapeutic approach in experimental model of depressive disorders in rats. To further validate the antidepressant-like efficacy of 3β-methoxypregnenolone, we investigated effects of a longer treatment (4-week oral administration; 50mg/kg/d) in a nonrodent species, the tree shrew, exposed to psychosocial stress that elicits close-to-human alterations observed in patients with depressive disorders.
methodsDuring the experimental period, physiological parameters were registered, including core body temperature and electroencephalogram, while animals were videotaped to analyze their avoidance behavior. Morning urine samples were collected for measurements of cortisol and noradrenaline levels.
resultsWe found that treatment with 3β-methoxypregnenolone abolished stress-triggered avoidance behavior and prevented hormone hypersecretion, hypothermia, and sleep disturbances, further suggesting its antidepressant-like efficacy. Comparative treatment with fluoxetine also prevented some of the physiological alterations, while the hypersecretion of cortisol and sleep disturbances were not or partially restored by fluoxetine, suggesting a better efficacy of 3β-methoxypregnenolone. Alpha-tubulin isoforms were measured in hippocampi: we found that 3β-methoxypregnenolone reversed the specific decrease in acetylation of α-tubulin induced by psychosocial stress, while it did not modify the psychosocial stress-elicited reduction of tyrosinated α-tubulin.
conclusionsTaken together, these data strongly suggest a potent antidepressant-like effect of 3β-methoxypregnenolone on translational parameters.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.