- A Single Administration of the Atypical Psychedelic Ibogaine or Its Metabolite Noribogaine Induces an Antidepressant-Like Effect in Rats
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Anecdotal reports and open-label case studies in humans indicated that the psychedelic alkaloid ibogaine exerts profound antiaddictive effects. Ample preclinical evidence demonstrated the efficacy of ibogaine, and its main metabolite, noribogaine, in substance-use-disorder rodent models. In contrast to addiction research, depression-relevant effects of ibogaine or noribogaine in rodents have not been previously examined. We have recently reported that the acute ibogaine administration induced a long-term increase of brain-derived neurotrophic factor mRNA levels in the rat prefrontal cortex, which led us to hypothesize that ibogaine may elicit antidepressant-like effects in rats. Accordingly, we characterized behavioral effects (dose- and time-dependence) induced by the acute ibogaine and noribogaine administration in rats using the forced swim test (FST, 20 and 40 mg/kg i.p., single injection for each dose). We also examined the correlation between plasma and brain concentrations of ibogaine and noribogaine and the elicited behavioral response. We found that ibogaine and noribogaine induced a dose- and time-dependent antidepressant-like effect without significant changes of animal locomotor activity. Noribogaine's FST effect was short-lived (30 min) and correlated with high brain concentrations (estimated >8 μM of free drug), while the ibogaine's antidepressant-like effect was significant at 3 h. At this time point, both ibogaine and noribogaine were present in rat brain at concentrations that cannot produce the same behavioral outcome on their own (ibogaine ～0.5 μM, noribogaine ～2.5 μM). Our data suggests a polypharmacological mechanism underpinning the antidepressant-like effects of ibogaine and noribogaine.
- Carrera, Ignacio,Fabius, Sara,Havel, Vaclav,Reyes, Ana Laura,Sames, Dalibor,Scorza, Cecilia,Urbanavicius, Jessika,Prieto, José Pedro,Rodr?guez, Paola
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p. 1661 - 1672
(2020/06/26)
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- Biosynthesis of an Anti-Addiction Agent from the Iboga Plant
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(-)-Ibogaine and (-)-voacangine are plant derived psychoactives that show promise as treatments for opioid addiction. However, these compounds are produced by hard to source plants, making these chemicals difficult for broad-scale use. Here we report the complete biosynthesis of (-)-voacangine, and de-esterified voacangine, which is converted to (-)-ibogaine by heating, enabling biocatalytic production of these compounds. Notably, (-)-ibogaine and (-)-voacangine are of the opposite enantiomeric configuration compared to the other major alkaloids found in this natural product class. Therefore, this discovery provides insight into enantioselective enzymatic formal Diels-Alder reactions.
- Farrow, Scott C.,Kamileen, Mohamed O.,Caputi, Lorenzo,Bussey, Kate,Mundy, Julia E. A.,McAtee, Rory C.,Stephenson, Corey R. J.,O'Connor, Sarah E.
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p. 12979 - 12983
(2019/08/26)
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- METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR PREPARING NORIBOGAINE FROM VOACANGINE
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Disclosed are methods and compositions for preparing and purifying the non-addictive alkaloid noribogaine.
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Page/Page column 19; 20
(2012/08/08)
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- NORIBOGAINE COMPOSITIONS
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Disclosed are noribogaine compositions comprising a very high level of the 2(R), 4(S), 5(S), 6(S) and 18(R) enantiomer and not more than 0.5 wt% of ibogaine relative to the total amount of noribogaine.
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Page/Page column 15-16
(2012/02/05)
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