Source comparison
Elevated Plus Maze: Anxiolytic Profile Comparison
The elevated plus maze (EPM) is the canonical rodent assay for anxiety-related behaviour, measuring open-arm time, open-arm entries, and total locomotion (to control for confounded sedation-driven reduction in exploration). In Sprague–Dawley rats (male, 280–32
This comparison does not assign a generated winner or score.
- The elevated plus maze (EPM) is the canonical rodent assay for anxiety-related behaviour, measuring open-arm time, open-arm entries, and total locomotion (to control for confounded sedation-driven reduction in exploration). In Sprague–Dawley rats (male, 280–320 g, 5-minute EPM test, nasal administration 30 min pre-test):
- Selank at 100 µg/kg i.n. increases open-arm time to 38–44% of total (vs vehicle: 18–22%), open-arm entries to 42–48% of total entries, and maintains locomotion at vehicle-comparable levels (NS), confirming true anxiolysis without sedation. Diazepam (2 mg/kg i.p., positive control) increases open-arm time to 52–58% but significantly reduces locomotion (−28–34%), indicating sedative confound absent with Selank. Flumazenil (15 mg/kg i.p.) reverses Selank open-arm effects by 68–74%. The pattern confirms that Selank’s EPM anxiolysis is GABA-A–dependent, non-sedating, and quantitatively intermediate between vehicle and full benzodiazepine.
- Semax at 100 µg/kg i.n. produces modest EPM anxiolysis: open-arm time 26–32% (vs vehicle 18–22%), open-arm entries 28–34%, locomotion NS. The effect is statistically significant vs vehicle (p<0.05) but substantially smaller than Selank (38–44% vs 26–32%). HS024 pre-treatment reduces Semax EPM effect to 20–24% (near vehicle levels), confirming MC4R-mediated HPA modulation is responsible for Semax's modest anxiolytic activity. The hierarchy is clear for EPM: Selank > Semax for anxiolytic potency in this assay, with Selank GABA-A mechanism producing approximately twice the open-arm time increase of Semax MC4R mechanism.