ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF KETAMINE AND ITS ENANTIOMERS ON COMPULSIVE-LIKE AND DEPRESSIVE-LIKE BEHAVIOR

<p>Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common and often serious disorder that can impair a person’s ability to function and live a normal life. The current first line treatments for OCD are serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), or a combination of these treatments. Despite medical advancements, current treatments are not effective for a large percentage (~33%) of people and often have a delayed onset of 8 to 12 weeks. The inability to effectively help those who suffer from OCD has led researchers to investigate novel therapeutic drugs, like ketamine, for treatment. The current study examined the effects of R/S-ketamine, S-ketamine, R-ketamine and (2<em>R</em>, 6<em>R</em>)-Hydroxynorketamine ((2R, 6R)-HNK) using the marble burying test, a model to assess anti-compulsive effects of drugs, and the novel suppressed feeding test, a model to assess the antidepressant-like effects of drugs. Further, tests were conducted 0.5 and 72 hours after administration to assess the short-acting and potentially long-lasting effects of these compounds. The current study found that S-ketamine decreased marble burying 0.5 hours after administration at both 10 mg/kg and 30 mg/kg doses in the MBT. R-ketamine also created significant decreases in marble burying at a 10 mg/kg dose 0.5 hours after administration. In the NSFT, a 10 mg/kg dose of R-ketamine produced a significant reduction in latency to feed in ANOVA analyses but not in Kaplan-Meier survival curve analyses. Our results suggest that both S-ketamine and R-ketamine may function as rapid but short lasting anti-compulsive compounds. </p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychological Science

Year dc:date.available

2026

Author dc:creator

• Walstrom, Joseph

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Adam Prus

• ketamine
• obsessive-compulsive disorder
• marble burying
• novel suppressed feeding
• s-ketamine
• r-ketamine
• (2R
• 6R)-HNK
• Experimental Analysis of Behavior
• Other Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.nmu.edu/theses/924

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.nmu.edu:theses-1974