Abstract
The Aquilaria sinensis (Lour.) Gilg (CX)–Aucklandia costus Falc. (MX) herbal pair is frequently used in traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions for treating depression. The volatile oil from CX and MX has been shown to have good pharmacological activities on the central nervous system, but its curative effect and mechanism in the treatment of depression are unclear. Therefore, the antidepressant effect of the volatile oil from CX–MX (CMVO) was studied in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) rats. The suppressive effects of CMVO (25, 50, 100 μL/kg) against CUMS-induced depression-like behavior were evaluated using the forced swimming test (FST), open field test (OFT) and sucrose preference test (SPT). The results showed that CMVO exhibited an antidepressant effect, reversed the decreased sugar preference in the SPT and prolongation of immobility time in the FST induced by CUMS, increased the average speed, time to enter the central area, total moving distance, and enhanced the willingness of rats to explore the environment in the OFT. Inhalational administration of CMVO decreased levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone and corticosterone in serum and the expression of corticotropin-releasing hormone mRNA in the hypothalamus, which indicated regulation of over-activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis. In addition, CMVO restored levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), dopamine, norepinephrine and acetylcholine in the hippocampus. The RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry results showed that CMVO up-regulated the expression of 5-HT1A mRNA. This study demonstrated the antidepressant effect of CMVO in CUMS rats, which was possibly mediated via modulation of monoamine and cholinergic neurotransmitters and regulation of the HPA axis.
Highlights
Depression is an emotional rhythm disorder that has significant and lasting depressed mood as the main symptom (Difrancesco et al, 2019)
The depression-like behavior in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) rats was assessed to examine the antidepressant effects of CMVO using the open field test (OFT), forced swimming test (FST) and sucrose preference test (SPT)
There was an obvious antidepressant effect in the Fluoxetine hydrochloride (FH) group according to the behavioral experiments (OFT, FST, SPT), the body weights of rats decreased slightly compared with the model group, which was not consistent with some experimental results reported previously (Xing et al, 2019; Li et al, 2020c)
Summary
Depression is an emotional rhythm disorder that has significant and lasting depressed mood as the main symptom (Difrancesco et al, 2019) It may be accompanied by insomnia, addiction, neurodegenerative diseases and other complications (Chen et al, 2019), and it seriously affects the physical and mental health of patients. Based on the monoamine neurotransmitter deficiency hypothesis, the commonly used antidepressants are mainly chemical medicines such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors. These medicines have shortcomings that include poor curative effect, long duration of treatment and recurrence after drug withdrawal, and adverse reactions such as sexual dysfunction, nausea, tremor and insomnia (Zhuo et al, 2020). Many studies have shown that volatile oils from aromatic herbs are potential natural medicines for the treatment of depression
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