ABSTRACT
Background: Antidepressants are commonly prescribed drugs. Co-existing disorders like anxiety require therapy with other drugs. The profiles of pharmacological effects of these drugs on central nervous system are influenced by the administration of these drugs either as single or combination. This study is designed to observe the behavioral effects of antidepressants along with the antianxiety agent buspirone in mice. Methods: Four antidepressant drugs belonging to different groups are selected for the study. Amitriptyline, citalopram, venlafaxine and mirtazapine are given orally for 2 weeks. Subsequently, buspirone is added to each antidepressant drug for a period of 3 weeks. The behavioral effects in mice are observed at weekly intervals using photoactometer, rotarod, forced swim test and elevated plus maze. Results: The antidepressant drugs amitriptyline and citalopram showed any change in spontaneous motor activity recorded by photoactometer. In rotarod test venlafaxine showed an increase in values, which showed further increase when buspirone was added. In the forced swim test also, venlafaxine showed a different pattern of effects when compared to other antidepressants. In the elevated plus maze test, the four antidepressants did not show any increase in the time spent in open arm excepting citalopram. Venlafaxine showed an increase in time spent in closed arm. Conclusions: The test drugs do not show any significant depression of central nervous system at the dose used. Venlafaxine showed a different pattern of activity in the rotarod test and swim test. The variation in response is attributed to their effects on central neurotransmitter.