Alteration of Behavioral Changes and Hippocampus Galanin Expression in Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress-Induced Depression Rats and Effect of Electroacupuncture Treatment

To explore new noninvasive treatment options for depression, this study investigated the effects of electric acupuncture (EA) for depression rat models. Depression in rats was induced by unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS) combined with isolation for 21 days. Eighteen male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned into three groups: control, model, and EA groups. Rats were treated by EA once daily for 21 days. The results showed that body weight and sucrose consumption were significantly increased in EA group than in the model group. The crossing numbers and rearing numbers in the open field test significantly decreased in the model group but not in the EA group. And EA treatments upregulated levels of hippocampus galanin (Gal) in UCMS rats back to relative normal levels. The present study suggested that EA had antidepressant effects on UCMS model rats. The potential antidepressant effect may be related to upregulating Gal expression in hippocampus.

Download Full-text

Effects of Electroacupuncture at Auricular Concha Region on the Depressive Status of Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Rat Models

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2013/789674 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Ru-Peng Liu ◽

Ji-Liang Fang ◽

Pei-Jing Rong ◽

Yufeng Zhao ◽

Hong Meng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Open Field Test ◽

Treatment Options ◽

Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Antidepressant Effect ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Noninvasive Treatment ◽

Once Daily ◽

Rat Models ◽

Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Male Wistar Rats

To explore new noninvasive treatment options for depression, this study investigated the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) at the auricular concha region (ACR) of depression rat models. Depression in rats was induced by unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS) combined with isolation for 21 days. Eighty male Wistar rats were randomly assigned into four groups: normal, UCMS alone, UCMS with EA-ACR treatment, and UCMS with EA-ear-tip treatment. Rats under inhaled anesthesia were treated once daily for 14 days. The results showed that blood pressure and heart rate were significantly reduced in the EA-ACR group than in the UCMS alone group or the EA-ear-tip group. The open-field test scores significantly decreased in the UCMS alone and EA-ear-tip groups but not in the EA-ACR group. Both EA treatments downregulated levels of plasma cortisol and ACTH in UCMS rats back to normal levels. The present study suggested that EA-ACR can elicit similar cardioinhibitory effects as vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), and EA-ACR significantly antagonized UCMS-induced depressive status in UCMS rats. The antidepressant effect of EA-ACR is possibly mediated via the normalization of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis hyperactivity.

Download Full-text

Food Enrichment with Glycyrrhiza glabra Extract Suppresses ACE2 mRNA and Protein Expression in Rats—Possible Implications for COVID-19

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu13072321 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (7) ◽

pp. 2321

Author(s):

Daniela Jezova ◽

Peter Karailiev ◽

Lucia Karailievova ◽

Agnesa Puhova ◽

Harald Murck

Keyword(s):

Small Intestine ◽

Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Glycyrrhiza Glabra ◽

Entry Point ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats ◽

Mrna And Protein Expression

Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is a key entry point of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus known to induce Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We have recently outlined a concept to reduce ACE2 expression by the administration of glycyrrhizin, a component of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract, via its inhibitory activity on 11beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11betaHSD2) and resulting activation of mineralocorticoid receptor (MR). We hypothesized that in organs such as the ileum, which co-express 11betaHSD2, MR and ACE2, the expression of ACE2 would be suppressed. We studied organ tissues from an experiment originally designed to address the effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract on stress response. Male Sprague Dawley rats were left undisturbed or exposed to chronic mild stress for five weeks. For the last two weeks, animals continued with a placebo diet or received a diet containing extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra root at a dose of 150 mg/kg of body weight/day. Quantitative PCR measurements showed a significant decrease in gene expression of ACE2 in the small intestine of rats fed with diet containing Glycyrrhiza glabra extract. This effect was independent of the stress condition and failed to be observed in non-target tissues, namely the heart and the brain cortex. In the small intestine we also confirmed the reduction of ACE2 at the protein level. Present findings provide evidence to support the hypothesis that Glycyrrhiza glabra extract may reduce an entry point of SARS-CoV-2. Whether this phenomenon, when confirmed in additional studies, is linked to the susceptibility of cells to the virus requires further studies.

Download Full-text

Food Enrichment with Glycyrrhiza Glabra Extract Suppresses ACE2 mRNA and Protein Expression in Rats – Possible Implications for COVID-19

10.20944/preprints202105.0525.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Daniela Jezova ◽

Peter Karailiev ◽

Lucia Karailievova ◽

Agnesa Puhova ◽

Harald Murck

Keyword(s):

Small Intestine ◽

Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Glycyrrhiza Glabra ◽

Entry Point ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats ◽

Mrna And Protein Expression

Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is a key entry point of SARS-CoV-2 virus known to induce COVID-19. We have recently outlined the concept to reduce ACE2 expression by the administration of glycyrrhizin, a component of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract, via its inhibitory activity on 11beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11betaHSD2) and resulting activation of mineralocorticoid receptor (MR). We hypothesized that in organs, such as the intestine, which co-express 11betaHSD2, MR and ACE2, the expression of ACE2 would be suppressed. We studied organ tissues from an experiment originally designed to address the effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract on the stress response. Male Sprague Dawley rats were left undisturbed or exposed to chronic mild stress for five weeks. For the last two weeks, animals continued with a placebo diet or received a diet containing extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra root at a dose of 150 mg/kg of body weight/day. Quantitative PCR measurements showed a significant decrease in gene expression of ACE2 in the small intestine of rats fed with diet containing Glycyrrhiza glabra extract. This effect was independent of the stress condition and failed to be observed in non-target tissues, namely the heart and the brain cortex. In the small intestine we confirmed the reduction of ACE2 also at the protein level. Present findings provide first evidence to support the hypothesis that Glycyrrhiza glabra extract may reduce an entry point of SARS-CoV-2. Whether this phenomenon, when confirmed in additional studies, is linked to the susceptibility of cells to the virus requires further studies.

Download Full-text

Possible Involvement of the IL-6/JAK2/STAT3 Pathway in the Hypothalamus in Depressive-Like Behavior of Rats Exposed to Chronic Mild Stress

Neuropsychobiology ◽

10.1159/000509908 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Xiaofeng Guan ◽

Qi Wang ◽

Mengxi Liu ◽

Anji Sun ◽

Xiaobai Li

Keyword(s):

Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Janus Kinase ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Mrna Levels ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Stat3 Pathway ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats ◽

Treatment Of Depression ◽

Immobility Time ◽

Swimming Test

Introduction: The interleukin-6/janus kinase 2/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (IL-6/JAK2/STAT3) pathway plays an important role in immune function, but little research has focused on this pathway in depression. We sought to examine the relationship between the IL-6/JAK2/STAT3 pathway and depressive-like behavior. Methods: Using a chronic mild stress (CMS) paradigm, a total of 36 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four matched groups: (1) control + vehicle, (2) CMS + vehicle, (3) control + paroxetine, and (4) CMS + paroxetine. We investigated the effects of CMS on depressive-like behavior by using the forced swimming test (FST). Subsequently, the mRNA levels of members of the IL-6/JAK2/STAT3 pathway were assessed by qRT-PCR. Results: We found that rats exposed to CMS displayed a significant increase in immobility time and a decrease in climbing time in the FST. Moreover, mRNA levels of IL-6, JAK2, and STAT3 in the hypothalamus were increased following CMS. We also found that mRNA levels of IL-6, JAK2, and STAT3 were normalized by paroxetine administration, which coincided with normalization of the depressive-like behavior. Conclusions: The IL-6/JAK2/STAT3 pathway may be activated in depression, and targeting this pathway may provide a novel effective therapeutic approach for the treatment of depression.

Download Full-text

Skeletal Muscle Metabolomic Responses to Endurance and Resistance Training in Rats under Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18041645 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 1645

Author(s):

Xiangyu Liu ◽

Xiong Xue ◽

Junsheng Tian ◽

Xuemei Qin ◽

Shi Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Resistance Exercise ◽

Endurance Exercise ◽

Field Tests ◽

Treadmill Running ◽

Control Group ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Exercise Interventions ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats

The objectives of this study were to compare the antidepressant effects between endurance and resistance exercise for optimizing interventions and examine the metabolomic changes in different types of skeletal muscles in response to the exercise, using a rat model of chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)-induced depression. There were 32 male Sprague-Dawley rats randomly divided into a control group (C) and 3 experimental groups: CUMS control (D), endurance exercise (E), and resistance exercise (R). Group E underwent 30 min treadmill running, and group R performed 8 rounds of ladder climbing, 5 sessions per week for 4 weeks. Body weight, sucrose preference, and open field tests were performed pre and post the intervention period for changes in depressant symptoms, and the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles were sampled after the intervention for metabolomic analysis using the 1H-NMR technique. The results showed that both types of exercise effectively improved the depression-like symptoms, and the endurance exercise appeared to have a better effect. The levels of 10 metabolites from the gastrocnemius and 13 metabolites from the soleus of group D were found to be significantly different from that of group C, and both types of exercise had a callback effect on these metabolites, indicating that a number of metabolic pathways were involved in the depression and responded to the exercise interventions.

Download Full-text

Aerobic Exercise Prevents Depression via Alleviating Hippocampus Injury in Chronic Stressed Depression Rats

Brain Sciences ◽

10.3390/brainsci11010009 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 9

Author(s):

Jie Kang ◽

Di Wang ◽

Yongchang Duan ◽

Lin Zhai ◽

Lin Shi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Aerobic Exercise ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Glutamatergic System ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Bdnf Expression ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats ◽

Immobility Time ◽

Neurotoxic Effects ◽

Swimming Test ◽

Underlying Mechanisms

(1) Background: Depression is one of the overwhelming public health problems. Alleviating hippocampus injury may prevent depression development. Herein, we established the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model and aimed to investigate whether aerobic exercise (AE) could alleviate CUMS induced depression-like behaviors and hippocampus injury. (2) Methods: Forty-eight healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats (200 ± 20 g) were randomly divided into 4 groups (control, CUMS, CUMS + 7 days AE, CUMS + 14 days AE). Rats with AE treatments were subjected to 45 min treadmill per day. (3) Results: AE intervention significantly improved CUMS-induced depressive behaviors, e.g., running square numbers and immobility time assessed by the open field and forced swimming test, suppressed hippocampal neuron apoptosis, reduced levels of phosphorylation of NMDA receptor and homocysteine in hippocampus, as well as serum glucocorticoids, compared to the CUMS rats. In contrast, AE upregulated phosphorylation of AMPAR receptor and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) hippocampus in CUMS depression rats. The 14 day-AE treatment exhibited better performance than 7 day-AE on the improvement of the hippocampal function. (4) Conclusion: AE might be an efficient strategy for prevention of CUMS-induced depression via ameliorating hippocampus functions. Underlying mechanisms may be related with glutamatergic system, the neurotoxic effects of homocysteine, and/or influences in glucocorticoids-BDNF expression interaction.

Download Full-text

Antidepressant effect of geranylgeranylacetone in a chronic mild stress model of depression and its possible mechanism

Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine ◽

10.3892/etm.2012.669 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

pp. 627-632 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

JING-MEI ZHONG ◽

SHAO-YUAN WU ◽

JIE BAI ◽

QIANG GUO ◽

JIAN TAO ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chronic Mild Stress ◽

Antidepressant Effect ◽

Mild Stress ◽

Stress Model

Download Full-text

Ultrastructural changes of Basolateral Amygdaloid nuclei in the Sprague Dawley rats brain following exposure to naphthalene balls

International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical Sciences ◽

10.26452/ijrps.v12i2.4676 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 1272-1275

Author(s):

Angu Bala Ganesh K S V ◽

Sujeet Shekhar Sinha ◽

Kesavi Durairaj ◽

Abdul Sahabudeen K

Keyword(s):

Structural Changes ◽

Corn Oil ◽

Chromatin Condensation ◽

Ultrastructural Changes ◽

High Dose ◽

Model Group ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats ◽

The Brain ◽

Amygdaloid Nuclei

Naphthalene is a bicyclic aromatic constituent commonly used in different domestic and marketable applications comprising soil fumigants, lavatory scent disks and mothballs. Accidentally, workers, children and animals are exposed to naphthalene mothballs, so there is a need to study the pathology behind this chemical toxicity. The current study was carried out to assess the ultra structural changes of basolateral amygdaloid nuclei in the Sprague Dawley rats brain in association to naphthalene toxicity. The toxicity model group was administered with naphthalene (200 and 400mg) using corn oil as a vehicle for 28 days. The post delayed toxicity of naphthalene high dose ingestion was also assessed in rats. After the experimental period, the brain tissue was processed to observe the ultra structural changes using a transmission electron microscope. The alterations in cell organelles, nuclei damage, mitochondrial swelling, chromatin condensation suggested naphthalene induced damage in the neurons of the basolateral amygdala of the brain in the toxicity model group. These experimental trials provide information about the alert of mothball usage in the home and identify risks linked with accidental exposure and misuse.

Download Full-text

Identification of Potential Therapeutic Targets in the Liver of Pioglitazone-Treated Type 2 Diabetes Sprague-Dawley Rats via Expression Profile Chip and iTRAQ Assay

Journal of Diabetes Research ◽

10.1155/2018/8120847 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Zhong-Xia Lu ◽

Wen-Jun Xu ◽

Yang-Sheng Wu ◽

Chang-Yu Li ◽

Yi-Tao Chen

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Blood Glucose ◽

Differentially Expressed Genes ◽

Fasting Blood Glucose ◽

Treated Group ◽

Differentially Expressed ◽

Model Group ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Sprague Dawley Rats

The aim of the present study was to identify key antidiabetic nodes in the livers of pioglitazone-treated type 2 diabetes mellitus Sprague-Dawley rats by transcriptomic and proteomic analysis. Rats were randomly divided into the control, the diabetes model, and the pioglitazone-treated groups. After treatment with pioglitazone for 11 weeks, the effects on fasting blood glucose, body weight, and blood biochemistry parameters were evaluated. Microarray and iTRAQ analysis were used to determine the differentially expressed genes/proteins in rat livers. 1.5-fold changes in gene expression and 1.2-fold changes in protein were set as the screening criteria. After treatment with pioglitazone for 11 weeks, fasting blood glucose in pioglitazone-treated rats was significantly lower than that in the model group. There was a tendency for pioglitazone to reduce TC, TG, TP, ALB, BUN, and HDL-c levels. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and gene ontology (GO) were applied to analyze differentially expressed genes/proteins. Furthermore, Western blotting and RT-qPCR were used to validate the results of microarray and iTRAQ. In conclusion, Cyp7a1, Cp, and RT1-EC2 are differentially expressed genes/proteins since they showed a similar trend in rats in the model group and the pioglitazone-treated group.

Download Full-text