TITLE:
CREB Protein Expressed Differently in the Frontal Cortices of Datura stramonium Treated Rats: Implication for Addiction and Neurodegeneration
AUTHORS:
Peter E. Ekanem, Dare S. Sunday, Kidanemariam Gaim
KEYWORDS:
CREB Protein, Datura stramonium, Wistar Rats, Frontal Cortices’ Neurons, Neurodegeneration, Addiction
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Behavioral and Brain Science,
Vol.6 No.5,
May
13,
2016
ABSTRACT: Background: cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) is one of the cellular
transcription factors found in neurons. CREB is also important for the survival
of neurons, and has an important role in the development of drug addiction. Datura stramonium (DS) is a tropical ubiquitous plant commonly
used to increase the intoxication of certain beverages for recreational purposes.
The seeds of this plant are very toxic and may produce addiction on prolong usage.
This research investigated the effects of administration of high doses of DS seeds
on the expression of CREB protein in both male and female rats’ frontal cortices
and its implication in addiction and neurodegeneration. Materials and Methods:
The study was conducted with a total of 24 male and female Wistar rats weighing
200 g - 250 g. The rats were divided into three groups of 8 rats each. Each group
was further divided into four sub-groups of 2 rats each. Ethanolic dried seed extract
of DS was diluted in normal saline and administered intraperitoneally (i.p.) to
the treatment groups. The treated sub-groups received 750 mg/kg of DS extract once in group 1, twice in group 2 and thrice in group 3 daily for 4 weeks
respectively, while the control sub-groups received i.p. normal saline concurrently
for the same duration of time. The rats were euthanized and an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was computed to detect
a significant main difference of DS effect on CREB expression for each group, while post hoc Bonferroni
Test compared CREB protein expression between male and female groups. Result: There
were significant differences in the expression of CREB protein between the sub-groups
and between the male and female rats of treated sub-group (p DS administration for a
prolong time may affect the expressions of CREB protein differently in male and
female treated rats which may consequently lead to addiction and neurodegeneration
affecting frontal cortex neurons.