Department of Anatomy, School of Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Institute of Metabolic Diseases, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Neurochem Res. 2023 Oct;48(10):3146-3159. doi: 10.1007/s11064-023-03970-4. Epub 2023 Jun 22.
Acupuncture can alleviate depression-like behaviors. However, the neural mechanisms behind the anti-depressive effect remain unknown. Perineuronal net (PNN) abnormalities have been reported in multiple psychiatric disorders. This study investigated the modulation and neural mechanism of PNNs in the anti-depressant process of electroacupuncture (EA) at Baihui (GV20) and Yintang (GV29) points. A rat depression model was induced by chronic unpredicted mild stress (CUMS). The results revealed that CUMS, applied for four weeks, specifically reduces PNNs around parvalbumin (PV). In addition, EA and fluoxetine treatments reverse the decrease in PNNs cell density and the ratio of PV and PNN double-positive cells to PV neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) after CUMS. Furthermore, EA treatment can reverse the decrease in the protein expression of PNN components (aggrecan and brevican) in the mPFC caused by stress. After EA treatment, the decreased expression of GAD67, GLuA1, and PSD95 in the mPFC induced by CUMS for four weeks was also reversed. PNN degradation in mPFC brain areas potentially interferes with the anti-depressant benefits of EA in rats with depression induced by CUMS. EA treatment did not increase PNNs cell density and the ratio of PV and PNN double-positive cells to PV neurons after PNNs degradation in the mPFC brain region of rats. This finding indicated that the mechanism of acupuncture's anti-depressant effect may be based on reversing the CUMS-induced decline in PNN expression, the functional impairment of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons, and the regulation of excitatory synaptic proteins expression.
针刺可以缓解抑郁样行为。然而，抗抑郁作用的神经机制尚不清楚。神经周细胞网络（PNN）异常已在多种精神疾病中报道。本研究探讨了电针（EA）在百会（GV20）和印堂（GV29）穴位抗抑郁过程中 PNN 的调节和神经机制。采用慢性不可预测轻度应激（CUMS）诱导大鼠抑郁模型。结果表明，CUMS 应用 4 周可特异性减少 PV 周围的 PNN。此外，EA 和氟西汀治疗可逆转 CUMS 后内侧前额叶皮质（mPFC）中 PNN 细胞密度和 PV 和 PNN 双阳性细胞与 PV 神经元比值的降低。此外，EA 治疗可逆转应激引起的 mPFC 中 PNN 成分（聚集蛋白聚糖和脑蛋白聚糖）蛋白表达的降低。经 EA 治疗后，CUMS 持续 4 周引起的 mPFC 中 GAD67、GLuA1 和 PSD95 表达降低也得到逆转。mPFC 脑区 PNN 降解可能干扰 EA 对 CUMS 诱导抑郁大鼠的抗抑郁作用。在 mPFC 脑区 PNN 降解后，EA 处理并未增加 PNN 细胞密度和 PV 和 PNN 双阳性细胞与 PV 神经元的比值。这一发现表明，针刺抗抑郁作用的机制可能基于逆转 CUMS 诱导的 PNN 表达下降、GABA 神经元功能障碍和兴奋性突触蛋白表达的调节。
