Anxiolytic effects of brown seaweed organic extracts in drosophilia melanogaster using the dark/light box test and the forced swim test: A chemical and proteomic characterization

Investigador: Ricardo Chiesa (Biología)

Descripción: Approximately 15.7 million people suffer from anxiety disorders (ADs) in the United States alone each year. Individuals with anxiety disorders are usually treated with benzodiazepines (BZs). This project aims to determine the potential anxiolytic effects of crude organic extracts and/or specific metabolites from the brown seaweed Stypopodium zonale, using the Dark/Light Box test and Forced Swim Test (FST) as behavioral anxiety-related paradigms in Drosophila melanogaster (Dmel). We have established Dmel as a model to analyze behavior related to anxiolysis caused by the administration of the crude organic extract. This research project is important because it provides an innovative alternative for the treatment of ADs without the adverse side-effects of BZs.