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The Role Of Valproic Acid, A Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor, In Reducing Anxiety Levels In Rats: An Epigenetics Study, Juliet Buteme
The Role Of Valproic Acid, A Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor, In Reducing Anxiety Levels In Rats: An Epigenetics Study, Juliet Buteme
Honors College Theses
Rats, like humans, show personality traits: they are born with different anxiety levels (i.e., high (HAn) or low anxiety (LAn) levels). In this study, we investigated (1) if treatment with valproic acid (VPA) can lower anxiety level in trait anxiety rats and (2) how VPA may interact with environment (e.g., enriched (EE), standard (SE) and isolated environments (IE)). VPA is a deacetylase inhibitor that increases Histone 3 acetylation, a known epigenetic mechanism that interacts with stress response proteins, and treats epilepsy and mood disorders. Since rats reared in IE exhibit heightened anxiety levels as compared to those in EE, we …