Research Article Antidepressant Effects of Mallotus oppositifolius in Acute Murine Models

License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Objective. Hydroalcoholic extract of leaves of Mallotus oppositifolius (MOE), a plant used for CNS conditions in Ghana, was investigated for acute antidepressant effects in the forced swimming (FST) and tail suspension tests (TST). Results. In both FST and TST, MOE (10, 30, and 100mg kg−1) significantly decreased immobility periods and frequencies. A 3-day pretreatment with 200mg kg−1, i.p., para-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA), a tryptophan hydroxylase inhibitor, reversed the decline in immobility and the increase of swimming score induced by MOE in the modified FST. Pretreatment with reserpine alone (1mg kg−1)