Anti-depressant effects of ethanol extract from Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed in chlorpromazine-induced Drosophila melanogaster depression model

Depression is a severe mental illness caused by a deficiency of dopamine and serotonin. Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) has long been used to treat pain, nausea, and depression. This study investigates the anti-depressant effects of C. sativa (hemp) seed ethanol extract (HE) in chlorpromazine (CPZ)-induced Drosophila melanogaster depression model. The normal group was untreated, and the control group was treated with CPZ (0.1% of media) for 7 days. The experimental groups were treated with a single HE treatment (0.5, 1.0, and 1.5% of media) and a mixture of 0.1% CPZ and HE for 7 days. The locomotor activity, behavioural patterns, depression-related gene expression, and neurotransmitters level of flies were investigated. The behavioural patterns of individual flies were significantly reduced with 0.1% CPZ treatment. In contrast, combination treatment of 1.5% HE and 0.1% CPZ significantly increased subjective daytime activity (p