Xia Baomei, Chen Chang, Tao Weiwei
Faculty of Rehabilitation Science, Nanjing Normal University of Special Education, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
School of Chinese Medicine & School of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
Am J Chin Med. 2021;49(5):1115-1133. doi: 10.1142/S0192415X21500531. Epub 2021 May 27.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a systematic medicine. It provides alternative strategies for the treatment of depression with its clinical experience, comprehensive diagnosis, and treatment theory. Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) is the major form of TCM prescription, and numerous CHMs have been demonstrated to possess remarkable antidepressant-like properties. A diversity of mechanisms have been implicated in CHM-associated antidepressant property. This paper reviewed the neuroplastic mechanisms underlying the antidepressant actions of CHM, finding that CHM repairs neuroplasticity by improving neurogenesis, neurotrophic factors, synaptic spine morphology, cell signaling, glutamatergic system, monoamine neurotransmitters, and neural apoptosis. CHM thereby exerts an antidepressant effect, attempting to offer a better understanding of the mechanisms implicated in TCM-related antidepressant-like efficacy and laying a foundation for the scientific evaluation and development of TCM in treating depression.
中医是一种系统医学。它凭借其临床经验、综合诊断和治疗理论，为抑郁症的治疗提供了替代策略。中药是中医方剂的主要形式，大量中药已被证明具有显著的抗抑郁样特性。多种机制与中药相关的抗抑郁特性有关。本文综述了中药抗抑郁作用的神经可塑性机制，发现中药通过改善神经发生、神经营养因子、突触棘形态、细胞信号传导、谷氨酸能系统、单胺类神经递质和神经细胞凋亡来修复神经可塑性。中药从而发挥抗抑郁作用，试图更好地理解中医相关抗抑郁样疗效的机制，并为中医治疗抑郁症的科学评价和发展奠定基础。
