Drugs for alcoholism may be next-generation anti-anxiety drugs

Could the inhibitory effects of DSF also extend to signaling molecules? According to recent research, DSF actually inhibits a cytoplasmic protein called front, which controls the migration direction of certain immune cells

Few studies suggest that chemokine receptors may be involved in the regulation of emotional behavior in rodents

The EPM device consists of four arms arranged in a cross shape, connected to a central square

In this case, some mice were given diazepam, a drug commonly used to treat anxiety, and others were given DSF

Interestingly, these behavioral changes were similar to those given Valium

The team previously found that increased levels of extracellular glutamate, an important amino acid and neurotransmitter, were associated with increased anxiety in mice

"We propose that DSF inhibits the front protein and the chemokine signaling pathway under its influence, which may inhibit presynaptic glutamate transmission in the brain," said Prof.

The team was also pleasantly surprised to find that compared with diazepam, DSF treatment did not cause adverse effects such as amnesia, coordination disturbance or sedation

Prof Saitoh said: "These results suggest that DSF can be safely used in elderly patients with anxiety and insomnia and has the potential to be a breakthrough psychotropic drug

What are the long-term implications of these results? Dr.

This is one of the first studies to reveal that DSF has anxiolytic properties comparable to existing benzodiazepines, without showing any of the side effects observed with benzodiazepines

Journal Reference :

1. Akiyoshi Saitoh, Yoshifumi Nagayama, Daisuke Yamada, Kosho Makino, Toshinori Yoshioka, Nanami Yamanaka, Momoka Nakatani, Yoshino Takahashi, Mayuna Yamazaki, Chihiro Shigemoto, Misaki Ohashi, Kotaro Okano, Tomoki Omata, Etsuko Toda, Yoshitake Sano, Hideyo Takahashi, Kouji Matsushima , Yuya Terashima.