抑郁症被全球公认为最难治的疾病之一，其复杂性和多样性使得治疗极具挑战性。针灸已被证明对各种精神疾病有有益的作用。然而，针灸抗抑郁作用（尤其是抑郁症）的潜在机制仍然难以捉摸。因此，本研究旨在探讨针灸对慢性不可预测性应激（CUMS）诱导的大鼠抑郁症状的影响，并进一步阐明其潜在的分子机制。除对照组外，所有大鼠每天均暴露于两种应激源的 CUMS 下，持续 28 天。 CUMS 前一小时，对大鼠进行针灸、电针、假针灸或氟西汀（2.1 mg/kg）治疗。依次进行行为测试和生物学检测方法来评估大鼠的抑郁样表型。这项研究的结果表明，针灸疗法可以有效改善 CUMS 引起的大鼠抑郁样行为。此外，针灸对 CUMS 引起的丙二醛（MDA）、过氧化氢酶（CAT）、超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶（GSH-Px）、白细胞介素-1β（IL-1β）、白细胞介素-6 (IL-6)、肿瘤坏死因子-α (TNF-α)、脑源性神经营养因子 (BDNF)、环 AMP 反应元件结合蛋白 (CREB)、突触后密度 95 (PSD95)、γ-氨基丁酸(GABA) 和乙酰胆碱 (ACh)。此外，我们的研究结果表明，针灸还可以调节 CUMS 大鼠海马中的 ERK 和 Caspase-3 凋亡途径。这项研究表明，针灸可能通过调节海马神经炎症反应、氧化应激水平、细胞凋亡过程和增强突触可塑性发挥潜在的预防作用。© 2024。作者。

Depression is recognized globally as one of the most intractable diseases, and its complexity and diversity make treatment extremely challenging. Acupuncture has demonstrated beneficial effects in various psychiatric disorders. However, the underlying mechanisms of acupuncture's antidepressant action, particularly in depression, remain elusive. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of acupuncture on chronic unpredictability stress (CUMS)-induced depressive symptoms in rats and to further elucidate its underlying molecular mechanisms. All rats were exposed to CUMS of two stressors every day for 28 days, except for the control group. One hour before CUMS, rats were given a treatment with acupuncture, electroacupuncture, sham-acupuncture, or fluoxetine (2.1 mg/kg). Behavioral tests and biological detection methods were conducted in sequence to evaluate depression-like phenotype in rats. The findings of this study demonstrate that acupuncture therapy effectively ameliorated depression-like behavior induced by CUMS in rats. Additionally, acupuncture exerted a restorative effect on the alterations induced by CUMS in the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB), postsynaptic density95 (PSD95), gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and acetylcholine (ACh). Additionally, our findings indicate that acupuncture also modulates the ERK and Caspase-3 apoptotic pathways in the hippocampus of CUMS rats. This study suggests that acupuncture may play a potential preventive role by regulating hippocampal neuroinflammatory response, levels of oxidative stress, apoptotic processes, and enhancing synaptic plasticity.© 2024. The Author(s).