Mental health and drug use in college students: Should we take action?

BACKGROUND: College students are vulnerable to suffering from anxiety and depression. Moreover, mental disorders can contribute to drug consumption or inappropriate use of prescribed drugs. Studies on this topic in Spanish college students are limited. This work analyses anxiety and depression and psychoactive drug intake pattern in the post-COVID era in college students. METHODS: An online survey was conducted among college students from UCM (Spain). The survey collected data including demographic, academic student perception, GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scales, and psychoactive substances consumption. RESULTS: A total of 6798 students were included; 44.1 % (CI95%: 42.9 to 45.3) showed symptoms of severe anxiety and 46.5 % (CI95%: 45.4 to 47.8) symptoms of severe or moderately severe depression. The perception of these symptoms did not change after returning to face-to-face university classes in the post-COVID19 era. Despite the high percentage of cases with clear symptoms of anxiety and depression, most students never had a diagnosis of mental illnesses [anxiety 69.2 % (CI95%: 68.1 to 70.3) and depression 78.1 % (CI95%: 77.1 to 79.1)]. Regarding psychoactive substances, valerian, melatonin, diazepam, and lorazepam were the most consumed. The most worrying issue was the consumption of diazepam, 10.8 % (CI95%: 9.8 to 11.8), and lorazepam, 7.7 % (CI95%: 6.9 to 8.6) without medical prescription. Among illicit drugs, cannabis is the most consumed. LIMITATIONS: The study was based on an online survey. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of anxiety and depression aligned with poor medical diagnosis and high intake of psychoactive drugs should not be underestimated. University policies should be implemented to improve the well-being of students.

Lichen Depsides and Tridepsides: Progress in Pharmacological Approaches.

Depsides and tridepsides are secondary metabolites found in lichens. In the last 10 years, there has been a growing interest in the pharmacological activity of these compounds. This review aims to discuss the research findings related to the biological effects and mechanisms of action of lichen depsides and tridepsides. The most studied compound is atranorin, followed by gyrophoric acid, diffractaic acid, and lecanoric acid. Antioxidant, cytotoxic, and antimicrobial activities are among the most investigated activities, mainly in in vitro studies, with occasional in silico and in vivo studies. Clinical trials have not been conducted using depsides and tridepsides. Therefore, future research should focus on conducting more in vivo work and clinical trials, as well as on evaluating the other activities. Moreover, despite the significant increase in research work on the pharmacology of depsides and tridepsides, there are many of these compounds which have yet to be investigated (e.g., hiascic acid, lassalic acid, ovoic acid, crustinic acid, and hypothamnolic acid).

Lichen Extracts from Cetrarioid Clade Provide Neuroprotection against Hydrogen Peroxide-Induced Oxidative Stress.

Oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of many neurodegenerative diseases. Lichens have antioxidant properties attributed to their own secondary metabolites with phenol groups. Very few studies delve into the protective capacity of lichens based on their antioxidant properties and their action mechanism. The present study evaluates the neuroprotective role of Dactylina arctica, Nephromopsis stracheyi, Tuckermannopsis americana and Vulpicida pinastri methanol extracts in a hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) oxidative stress model in neuroblastoma cell line "SH-SY5Y cells". Cells were pretreated with different concentrations of lichen extracts (24 h) before H2O2 (250 µM, 1 h). Our results showed that D. arctica (10 µg/mL), N. stracheyi (25 µg/mL), T. americana (50 µg/mL) and V. pinastri (5 µg/mL) prevented cell death and morphological changes. Moreover, these lichens significantly inhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and lipid peroxidation and increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities and glutathione (GSH) levels. Furthermore, they attenuated mitochondrial membrane potential decline and calcium homeostasis disruption. Finally, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed that the secondary metabolites were gyrophoric acid and lecanoric acid in D. artica, usnic acid, pinastric acid and vulpinic acid in V. pinastri, and alectoronic acid in T. americana. In conclusion, D. arctica and V. pinastri are the most promising lichens to prevent and to treat oxidative stress-related neurodegenerative diseases.

The Genus Cetraria s. str.-A Review of Its Botany, Phytochemistry, Traditional Uses and Pharmacology.

The genus Cetraria s. str. (Parmeliaceae family, Cetrarioid clade) consists of 15 species of mostly erect brown or greenish yellow fruticose or subfoliose thallus. These Cetraria species have a cosmopolitan distribution, being primarily located in the Northern Hemisphere, in North America and in the Eurasia area. Phytochemical analysis has demonstrated the presence of dibenzofuran derivatives (usnic acid), depsidones (fumarprotocetraric and protocetraric acids) and fatty acids (lichesterinic and protolichesterinic acids). The species of Cetraria, and more particularly Cetraria islandica, has been widely employed in folk medicine for the treatment of digestive and respiratory diseases as decoctions, tinctures, aqueous extract, and infusions. Moreover, Cetraria islandica has had an important nutritional and cosmetic value. These traditional uses have been validated in in vitro and in vivo pharmacological studies. Additionally, new therapeutic activities are being investigated, such as antioxidant, immunomodulatory, cytotoxic, genotoxic and antigenotoxic. Among all Cetraria species, the most investigated by far has been Cetraria islandica, followed by Cetraria pinastri and Cetraria aculeata. The aim of the current review is to update all the knowledge about the genus Cetraria covering aspects that include taxonomy and phylogeny, morphology and distribution, ecological and environmental interest, phytochemistry, traditional uses and pharmacological properties.

Phytochemical Characterization and Pharmacological Properties of Lichen Extracts from Cetrarioid Clade by Multivariate Analysis and Molecular Docking.

Introduction: Lichens, due to the presence of own secondary metabolites such as depsidones and depsides, became a promising source of health-promoting organisms with pharmacological activities. However, lichens and their active compounds have been much less studied. Therefore, the present study aims to evaluate for the first time the antioxidant capacity and enzyme inhibitory activities of 14 lichen extracts belonging to cetrarioid clade in order to identify new natural products with potential pharmacological activity. Materials and Methods: In this study, an integrated strategy was applied combining multivariate statistical analysis (principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis), phytochemical identification, activity evaluation (in vitro battery of antioxidant assays FRAP, DPPH, and ORAC), and enzyme inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) and molecular profiling with in silico docking studies of the most promising secondary metabolites. Results. Among fourteen lichen samples, Dactylina arctica stands out for its higher antioxidant capacities, followed by Nephromopsis stracheyi, Tuckermannopsis americana, Vulpicida pinastri, and Asahinea scholanderi. Moreover, Asahinea scholanderi and Cetraria cucullata extracts were the best inhibitors of AChE and BuChE. The major secondary metabolites identified by HPLC were alectoronic acid and α-collatolic acid for Asahinea scholanderi and usnic acid and protolichesterinic acid for Cetraria cucullata. Molecular docking studies revealed that alectoronic acid exhibited the strongest binding affinity with both AChE and BuChE with and without water molecules. Conclusions: Our results concluded that these species could be effective in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, being mandatory further investigation in cell culture and in vivo models.

Lichen Depsidones with Biological Interest.

Depsidones are some of the most abundant secondary metabolites produced by lichens. These compounds have aroused great pharmacological interest due to their activities as antioxidants, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic agents. Hence, this paper aims to provide up-to-date knowledge including an overview of the potential biological interest of lichen depsidones. So far, the most studied depsidones are fumarprotocetraric acid, lobaric acid, norstictic acid, physodic acid, salazinic acid, and stictic acid. Their pharmacological activities have been mainly investigated in in vitro studies and, to a lesser extent, in in vivo studies. No clinical trials have been performed yet. Depsidones are promising cytotoxic agents that act against different cell lines of animal and human origin. Moreover, these compounds have shown antimicrobial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and fungi, mainly Candida spp. Furthermore, depsidones have antioxidant properties as revealed in oxidative stress in vitro and in vivo models. Future research should be focused on further investigating the mechanism of action of depsidones and in evaluating new potential actions as well as other depsidones that have not been studied yet from a pharmacological perspective. Likewise, more in vivo studies are prerequisite, and clinical trials for the most promising depsidones are encouraged.

Nutritional Value of Moringa oleifera Lam. Leaf Powder Extracts and Their Neuroprotective Effects via Antioxidative and Mitochondrial Regulation.

Age-related neurodegenerative disorders are an increasing public health problem. Oxidative stress is one of the major causes. Medicinal plant-based functional foods can be effective for these diseases. The aim of this work is to investigate the neuroprotective role of methanol extracts of Moringa oleifera leaf powder on antioxidant/oxidant imbalance and mitochondrial regulation in a H2O2-induced oxidative stress model in human neuroblastoma cells. On nutritional analysis, results showed that moringa contained 28.50% carbohydrates, 25.02% proteins, 10.42% fat, 11.83% dietary fiber, 1.108 mg ß-carotene, 326.4 µg/100 g vitamin B1 and 15.2 mg/100 g vitamin C. In-vitro assays revealed that moringa methanol extracts had more phenolic content and higher antioxidant activity than acetone extracts. Moreover, pretreatments with methanol extracts showed a protective effect against H2O2-induced oxidative damage through increasing cell viability and reducing free radicals. Furthermore, the extract decreased lipid peroxidation and enhanced glutathione levels and antioxidant enzyme activity. Finally, moringa also prevented mitochondrial dysfunction by regulating calcium levels and increasing mitochondrial membrane potential. The most active concentration was 25 µg/mL. In summary, the nutritional and functional properties of Moringa oleifera as a neuroprotective agent could be beneficial to protect against oxidative stress and provide necessary nutrients for a healthy diet.

Dibenzofurans from Lichens - A Pharmacological Overview.

Lichens are a symbiotic association between a fungus (mycobiont) and a green algae/- cyanobacterium (photobiont). Lichens are a source of secondary metabolites, most of them being exclusively for these species, among which dibenzofurans are found. Dibenzofurans are a small group (over 35 different identified compounds), being usnic acid the most studied. In the last 10 years, there has been a growing interest in the pharmacological activity of dibenzofurans. In this work, dibenzofurans isolated from lichens (alectosarmentin, condidymic acid, didymic acid, isousnic acid, isostrepsilic acid, usimines A-C and usnic acid) were reviewed, most of which showed antibacterial, antifungal, and cytotoxic activities. These findings provide future guidance for research on pharmacological activity of dibenzofurans.