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Article

A Comprehensive Approach to the Antidepressant-like Effect and Toxicity of Thunbergia alata Bojer ex Sims (Acanthaceae): Involvement of the Serotoninergic System

by
Mayra Beatriz Gómez-Patiño
1,†,
Ana María Dorantes-Barrón
2,†,
Daniel Arrieta-Báez
1,
Noé Jurado-Hernández
2,
Julia Cassani
3,
Rosa María Vigueras-Villaseñor
4,
Lucía Martínez-Mota
5,
Jessica A. Ibarra Ocaña
2 and
Rosa Estrada-Reyes
2,*
1
Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Centro de Nanociencias y Micro y Nanotecnologías, Unidad Profesional Adolfo López Mateos, Col. Zacatenco, Mexico City 07738, Mexico
2
Laboratorio de Fitofarmacología, Dirección de Investigaciones en Neurociencias, Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz, Calzada México-Xochimilco 101, Col. San Lorenzo Huipulco, Mexico City 14370, Mexico
3
Unidad Xochimilco, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Calzada del Hueso 1100, Mexico City 04960, Mexico
4
Laboratorio de Biología de la Reproducción, Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, Insurgentes Sur 3700-C, Mexico City 04530, Mexico
5
Laboratorio de Farmacología Conductual, Dirección de Investigaciones en Neurociencias, Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz, Calzada México-Xochimilco 101, Mexico City 14370, Mexico
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18(12), 1812; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18121812
Submission received: 7 December 2024 / Revised: 30 October 2025 / Accepted: 18 November 2025 / Published: 27 November 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Neuropharmacology of Plant Extracts and Their Active Compounds)
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Abstract

Background: Thunbergia alata is employed in traditional medicine to treat culture-bound syndromes such as “susto” (fright) or “espanto” (fearfulness). These conditions may correlate with depressive disorders. However, there is no evidence that this species has antidepressant properties. Aims: To characterize the antidepressant-like effect of an aqueous extract of T. alata in different paradigms and to analyze the role of brain monoamines in such actions. Methods: Independent groups of mice were treated with saline or the extract (1, 5, 10, 50, and 100 mg/kg; p.o.) and evaluated in the tail suspension (TST) and forced swimming tests (FST). Biochemical mechanisms were analyzed using inhibitors of monoamine synthesis, ligands of serotonergic receptors, and in vitro assays of MAO-A and MAO-B activity. Acute and sub-acute toxicity was evaluated. Results: The extract significantly reduced the immobility time of mice in both the TST and the FST, without affecting locomotor activity, as did the prototypical antidepressant desipramine. PCPA, AMPT, and NAN-190 abolished the extract’s effects on despair, while serotonergic ligands (8-OH-DPAT, fluoxetine, and pindolol) facilitated their antidepressant action. T. alata inhibited MAO-A and B activity. High doses of the extract produced no change in organ morphology; LD50 was >2000 mg/kg. Conclusions: This is the first study to demonstrate that an aqueous extract of T. alata produces antidepressant effects mediated by the monoamine brain levels, especially serotonin. In addition to its use in culture-bounded syndromes, the present findings of safety and efficacy give support to the proposal that T. alata may be used in the treatment of depression.
Keywords: depression; noradrenergic system; mood disorders depression; noradrenergic system; mood disorders
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MDPI and ACS Style

Gómez-Patiño, M.B.; Dorantes-Barrón, A.M.; Arrieta-Báez, D.; Jurado-Hernández, N.; Cassani, J.; Vigueras-Villaseñor, R.M.; Martínez-Mota, L.; Ibarra Ocaña, J.A.; Estrada-Reyes, R. A Comprehensive Approach to the Antidepressant-like Effect and Toxicity of Thunbergia alata Bojer ex Sims (Acanthaceae): Involvement of the Serotoninergic System. Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18, 1812. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18121812

AMA Style

Gómez-Patiño MB, Dorantes-Barrón AM, Arrieta-Báez D, Jurado-Hernández N, Cassani J, Vigueras-Villaseñor RM, Martínez-Mota L, Ibarra Ocaña JA, Estrada-Reyes R. A Comprehensive Approach to the Antidepressant-like Effect and Toxicity of Thunbergia alata Bojer ex Sims (Acanthaceae): Involvement of the Serotoninergic System. Pharmaceuticals. 2025; 18(12):1812. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18121812

Chicago/Turabian Style

Gómez-Patiño, Mayra Beatriz, Ana María Dorantes-Barrón, Daniel Arrieta-Báez, Noé Jurado-Hernández, Julia Cassani, Rosa María Vigueras-Villaseñor, Lucía Martínez-Mota, Jessica A. Ibarra Ocaña, and Rosa Estrada-Reyes. 2025. "A Comprehensive Approach to the Antidepressant-like Effect and Toxicity of Thunbergia alata Bojer ex Sims (Acanthaceae): Involvement of the Serotoninergic System" Pharmaceuticals 18, no. 12: 1812. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18121812

APA Style

Gómez-Patiño, M. B., Dorantes-Barrón, A. M., Arrieta-Báez, D., Jurado-Hernández, N., Cassani, J., Vigueras-Villaseñor, R. M., Martínez-Mota, L., Ibarra Ocaña, J. A., & Estrada-Reyes, R. (2025). A Comprehensive Approach to the Antidepressant-like Effect and Toxicity of Thunbergia alata Bojer ex Sims (Acanthaceae): Involvement of the Serotoninergic System. Pharmaceuticals, 18(12), 1812. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18121812

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