Event Abstract Back to Event Neurexan® influences stress-induced activity of the anterior cingulate cortex and associated brain regions Anne Kuehnel1*, Luisa Fensky2, Vanessa Teckentrup2, Yan Fan1, 3, Myron Schultz4 and Martin Walter1, 2 1 Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Germany 2 Universitätsklinikum Tübingen, Translational Psychiatry, Germany 3 Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Psychiatry, Germany 4 Biologische Heilmittel Heel GmbH, Germany Background: Neurexan®, a medicinal product sold over the counter (OTC), is composed of four ingredients, Passiflora incarnata (passionflower), Avena sativa (oats), Coffea arabica (coffee) and Zincum isovalerianicum (zinc valerianate). Neurexan® has been investigated in patients with symptoms related to acute stress, nervousness/restlessness, and insomnia. The underlying neuronal mechanisms that lead to the reduction of those symptoms are less clear. Two areas of importance in stress reaction are the anterior cingulated cortex (ACC) as well as the Amygdala. Previous studies showed that especially the dorsal ACC (dACC) influences the generation of autonomic arousal. Similarly it was reported that electrical stimulation of the ACC leads to changed physiological processes like heart rate and blood pressure. Additionally it was found that the dACC is activated under cognitive stress. Thus the dACC seems to be an important area controlling stress reactivity. We hypothesize Neurexan to induce changes in the activation of dACC and associated areas during a stress task. Method: The drug effect of a single dose was investigated using a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, two-period-crossover design. 36 male subjects between the ages of 31 to 59 took part in the experiment and completed various fMRI tasks. The stress response was induced using the ScanSTRESS (Streit et al., 2014), which uses arithmetic tasks as well as mental rotation tasks. Additionally the stress response was measured by saliva cortisol concentration and visual analogue scales (VAS) for nervousness and anxiety. Results: Paired-t-test analysis showed a significant cluster in the region of interest right dACC in the contrast placebo > verum in rotation stress > rotation control after correcting for multiple testing in the ROI. Additionally correlations with relevant psychological and endocrine measures will be reported. Conclusion: The intake of single dose of Neurexan® significantly reduces right dACC activation during psychosocial stress compared to the intake of placebo. References Streit, F., Haddad, L., Paul, T., Frank, J., Schäfer, A., Nikitopoulos, J., ... & Meyer-Lindenberg, A. (2014). A functional variant in the neuropeptide S receptor 1 gene moderates the influence of urban upbringing on stress processing in the amygdala. Stress, 17(4), 352-361. Keywords: stress, fMRI, dACC, Natural pharmaceutical, psychosocial stress Conference: ISAD LONDON 2017: Perspectives on Mood and Anxiety Disorders: Looking to the future, London, United Kingdom, 6 Jul - 7 Jul, 2017. Presentation Type: Poster Topic: Pharmacological / Somatic treatments Citation: Kuehnel A, Fensky L, Teckentrup V, Fan Y, Schultz M and Walter M (2019). Neurexan® influences stress-induced activity of the anterior cingulate cortex and associated brain regions. Front. Psychiatry. Conference Abstract: ISAD LONDON 2017: Perspectives on Mood and Anxiety Disorders: Looking to the future. doi: 10.3389/conf.fpsyt.2017.48.00010 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 26 May 2017; Published Online: 25 Jan 2019. * Correspondence: Ms. Anne Kuehnel, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany, annekuehnel@canlab.de Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Anne Kuehnel Luisa Fensky Vanessa Teckentrup Yan Fan Myron Schultz Martin Walter Google Anne Kuehnel Luisa Fensky Vanessa Teckentrup Yan Fan Myron Schultz Martin Walter Google Scholar Anne Kuehnel Luisa Fensky Vanessa Teckentrup Yan Fan Myron Schultz Martin Walter PubMed Anne Kuehnel Luisa Fensky Vanessa Teckentrup Yan Fan Myron Schultz Martin Walter Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.