Extracts from the plant Valeriana officinalis are commonly used as an herbal remedy to treat anxiety and insomnia. In vitro experiments have demonstrated that valerenic acid (VA), a chemical component of Valeriana extracts, binds to a specific type of receptor for one of the brain’s major inhibitory neurotransmitters (i.e., gamma aminobutyric acid type A receptors). However, there is relatively little in vivo evidence that VA affects behavior. The purpose of these experiments was to test whether administration of VA produces measurable changes in anxiety-like, depression-like, or locomotor behaviors in a mouse model. Groups of adolescent female mice were given one of three dosages of VA dissolved in ethanol (3mg/kg, 6mg/kg, or 12mg/kg), an ethanolic control solution, or diazepam (i.e., Valium, 1mg/kg), a federally approved treatment for anxiety. Afterwards, each mouse was tested in the elevated plus maze (EPM), open field test (OFT), and tail suspension test (TST), in that order. All tests were video recorded and analyzed for various behavioral parameters. The results demonstrated that VA reduced anxiety-like behavior in the EPM. Furthermore, the behavioral effects of VA largely mimicked those of diazepam.
