الفهرس 
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Abstract
Stress is one of the world’s greatest public health problems. Stress has been linked to the beginning and progression of a number of serious mental and physical illnesses. Stress coping techniques in laboratory animals, such as rats, have been shown to fail as a result of stressful life events. This thesis was therefore carried out to design three different models of stress (cold restraint stress induced gastric ulcer, single prolonged stress induced post-traumatic disorders, and maternal separation) and assess the efficacy of curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles to prevent stress adverse effects in reference to conventional curcumin oral preparation. In the 1st and 2nd model (cold restraint stress and single prolonged stress), treated groups received either curcumin or curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles (100 mg∕ kg) orally for 14 days before exposure to stress. Both cold restraint stress and single prolonged stress elicited marked behavioural changes. Besides, gastric ulcer formation is accompanied by histopathological abnormalities of the brain and stomach along with elevation of pain score in the cold restraint stress model. Curcumin and curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles improved stress-induced gastric ulcers, cognitive performance, and pain sensation. In the 3rd model (maternal separation), treated groups received either curcumin or curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles (100 mg∕ kg) orally for 10 days after weaning and after being exposed to maternal separation. Maternal separation resulted in reduced locomotor activity and increased anxiogenic behaviour. Treatment with either curcumin or curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles increased locomotor activity and also had a strong anxiolytic. Both curcumin and curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles had beneficial effects against the negative impacts of stress. In conclusion, these results shed light on the protective effect of curcumin and curcumin loaded chitosan nanoparticles against stress- induced neurobehavioural neurochemical deficits.