Abstract
Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum Linn.) is a famous traditional herb used in folk medicine. The essential oils of tobacco have been demonstrated in modern studies to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective properties, while its anxiolytic effect has not been reported. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the anxiolytic effect of Yunnan tobacco essential oil (YTO) and Zimbabwe tobacco essential oil (ZTO) on mice. The constituents of YTO and ZTO were analyzed by GC/MS. The anxiolytic effect of YTO and ZTO (0.1%, 1%, and 10%, v/v) on male ICR mice was evaluated in the light–dark box test (LDB) and the elevated plus maze test (EPM) test via inhalation and transdermal administration. After the behavioral tests, salivary corticosterone levels in mice were measured. The behavioral analysis showed that the administration of both YTO and ZTO elevated the time that the mice spent in the light chamber in the LDB test compared to the untreated control. In the EPM test, YTO and ZTO increased the time spent in open arms and the number of entries into the open arms. In addition, both YTO and ZTO significantly decreased salivary corticosterone levels in mice (p ≤ 0.001). In summary, our results demonstrated that inhalation and transdermal administration of both YTO and ZTO showed anxiolytic effect on male ICR mice.
Highlights
Anxiety disorder is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders with typical symptoms including high blood pressure, chest pain, tachypnea, sweating, and irritability [1,2,3]
Comparing the anxiolytic effect of Yunnan tobacco essential oil (YTO) and Zimbabwe tobacco essential oil (ZTO) in the light–dark box test (LDB) test, we found that YTO enhanced LCT% more than ZTO (Figure 5a,b), while ZTO enhanced more transitions than YTO (Figure 5c,d)
We evaluated the anxiolytic effects of Yunnan and Zimbabwe tobacco essential oils on ICR mice using LDB and elevated plus maze test (EPM) paradigms and by referring to salivary corticosterone levels
Summary
Anxiety disorder is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders with typical symptoms including high blood pressure, chest pain, tachypnea, sweating, and irritability [1,2,3]. As an alternative therapy to traditional medicines, natural products derived from plants (e.g., essential oils) have better efficacy in the treatment of anxiety disorders and have less side effects [7,8,9]. Various essential oils have been found to have anxiolytic effects, such as lavender [10,11,12], rose [13,14], bergamot [15,16], and chamomile [17] oils. Essential oils of some indigenous plants used in folk medicine have been demonstrated to exhibit anxiolytic effect in animal experiments, such as the essential oils of Coriandrum sativum L. Further studies have shown that the major components of essential oils have anxiolytic effects, including alcohols, terpenes, aldehydes, and ketones [21]
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