Efeito do óleo de espectro completo da cannabis sativa sobre comportamento tipo depressivo e estresse oxidativo em ratos submetidos a privação maternal e isolamento social

Abstract

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most common and disabling psychiatric disorders, constituting a serious challenge to public health. The causes of MDD are multifactorial, with factors such as childhood stress and lack of social support during adolescence playing a significant role in the onset of depressive episodes in adulthood. MDD treatment has low effectiveness due to side effects, medication intolerance, or resistance to treatment, especially after recurrent episodes. Due to these limitations, new therapeutic strategies, such as compounds derived from C. sativa, are being explored. This study aimed to analyze the effect of chronic treatment with full-spectrum Cannabis sativa (C. sativa) oil on depressive-like behavior and oxidative stress markers in male rats subjected to the maternal deprivation (MD) protocol in the first days of life and social isolation (SI) in young adulthood. The male Wistar rats were allocated into four groups (each with ten animals): Control without stress + saline; MD+SI + saline; MD+SI + escitalopram; MD+SI + full-spectrum C. sativa oil. At 80 days of age and under social isolation, the animals received chronic treatment for 14 days. In the last days of treatment, the animals were subjected to the forced swim test (FST) and locomotor activity in an open field. Animals subjected to MD+SI stress exhibited depressive-like behavior in the FST. Additionally, MD+SI stress resulted in increased myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity. Treatment with full-spectrum C. sativa oil significantly reduced depressive-like behavior as well as MPO activity. Although thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) levels did not significantly increase in animals subjected to MD+SI stress, treatment with full-spectrum C. sativa oil significantly reduced TBARS levels compared to animals subjected to stress protocols. These results suggest that full-spectrum C. sativa oil has potential antidepressant effects. The findings also suggest that modulation of oxidative stress may be one of the mechanisms through which C. sativa oil reduces depressive-like behavior. This study provides promising insights for the development of new cannabinoid-based therapies for the treatment of depressive disorders. Potential contributions to nursing include expanding knowledge on MDD and identifying therapeutic benefits associated with C. sativa.