British journal of pharmacology
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Drugs targeting brain kappa-opioid receptors produce profound alterations in mood. In the present study we investigated the possible anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects of the kappa-opioid receptor agonist salvinorin A, the main active ingredient of Salvia divinorum, in rats and mice. ⋯ The anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects of Salvinorin A are mediated by both kappa-opioid and endocannabinoid systems and may partly explain the subjective symptoms reported by recreational users of S. divinorum.