Behavioral effects of novel enterosorbent Noolit on mice with mixed depression/anxiety-like state.

The aim of this work was to examine the behavioral effects of a novel lithium-based enterosorbent, Noolit (665 mg/kg), on male mice with mixed depression/anxiety-like state evoked by exposure to repeated social defeats in daily agonistic confrontations. The lithium component allows Noolit to be used as a psychotropic drug. Two experiments are described, in which the therapeutic and preventative effects of chronic Noolit treatment were examined. Response to Noolit was assessed in the plus maze, open field, partition test, and Porsolt's test. In both experiments, Noolit produced obvious anxiolytic and antidepressant effects. Treatment with Noolit fully restored some behavioral parameters in the plus maze and open field in depressed mice and prevented depression that would otherwise have developed. It has been suggested that enterosorbent Noolit can be a potent drug for the treatment of mixed anxiety/depression pathologies and for prevention of mood disorders.