Rodent Elevated Plus Maze (EPM)

Newsletter # 17



Animal models

The EPM is a widely used behavioral assay for assessing acute or chronic anxiolytic and anxiogenic responses by measuring the time spent by rats (or mice) in the open arms of the maze (anxiogenic stimuli). Anxiolytic compounds have been found to increase the total duration of time spent there. Anxiogenic compounds are observed to work in the opposite way.

NEUROFIT has expanded its EPM reference data in the rat with four different agonist / antagonist systems. This new data highlights the value of the EPM as a stable and robust assay to detect the potential anxiolytic or anxiogenic effect of new compound entities.

  • Benzodiazepine receptor

    Diazepam (agonist) and Flumazenil (antagonist)
    * : p < 0.05; vs Vehicle group
    # : p < 0.05; Diazepam group

  • mGluR2/3 receptor

    LY354740 (agonist) and LY341495 (antagonist)
    * : p < 0.05; vs Vehicle group
    # : p < 0.05; vs LY354740 group

  • CCK receptor

    Devazepide (CCK1 antagonist) and CCK-8us (CCK2 agonist)
    * : p < 0.05; vs Vehicle group
    # : p < 0.05; vs Devazepide group

  • 5HT1B receptor

    GR127,935 (5HT1B/1D antagonist) and CP94,253 (5HT1B agonist)
    * : p < 0.05; vs Vehicle group
    # : p < 0.05; vs GR127,935 group


NEUROFIT offers a range of validated in vitro and in vivo screening tests for psychiatry and neurology.

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