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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurosci.
Sec. Neurodegeneration
Volume 18 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1422638

Electroacupuncture Ameliorates Depression-like Behaviors in Rats with Post-stroke Depression by Inhibiting Ferroptosis in the Prefrontal Cortex

Provisionally accepted
Jing Gao Jing Gao 1Yixuan Feng Yixuan Feng 2Lihua Wu Lihua Wu 3Zhimin Ding Zhimin Ding 2Shikui Qi Shikui Qi 1Mingyue Yu Mingyue Yu 2Ruonan Wu Ruonan Wu 2Xinyue Zheng Xinyue Zheng 2Yanyan Qin Yanyan Qin 2Yuchuang Tang Yuchuang Tang 2Mengyu Wang Mengyu Wang 2Xiaodong Feng Xiaodong Feng 1*Qiongshuai Zhang Qiongshuai Zhang 4
  • 1 First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China
  • 2 College of Rehabilitation Medicine, Henan University of Chinese Medicine, Zheng Zhou, China
  • 3 Seventh Clinical Medical College, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
  • 4 First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Post-stroke depression (PSD) is the most common complication following a stroke, significantly hindering recovery and rehabilitation in affected patients. Despite its prevalence, the pathogenesis of PSD remains poorly understood. Electroacupuncture (EA) has shown antidepressant effects, yet its neuroprotective properties are not well defined. Ferroptosis, a recently identified form of cell death, is implicated in the pathological processes of stroke and is associated with the development of depressionlike behaviors. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether PSD induces ferroptosis, identify potential therapeutic targets within these pathways, and elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to middle carotid artery occlusion and chronic unpredictable mild stress to model PSD. To explore the role of ferroptosis in the effects of EA, the ferroptosis inducer erastin was administered into the rats' lateral ventricles, followed by 14 days of EA treatment, with sessions lasting 30 minutes per day. The Zea-Longa score was used to assess neurological deficits, while the sucrose preference test, elevated plus maze test, and open-field test were employed to evaluate depression-like behaviors in the rats. Hematoxylin-eosin, Nissl, and Perl's staining were used to observe the morphological changes and iron deposition in the prefrontal neurons. Transmission electron microscopy provided detailed observations of mitochondrial morphological changes in neurons. To explore potential molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of EA, we utilized activity assay kits, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and Western blotting. The results indicated that EA improved depression-like behaviors, mitigated mitochondrial damage, and inhibited ferroptosis in prefrontal cortex neurons. Notably, the administration of erastin further enhanced these effects. Therefore, EA appears to improve depressionlike behaviors in PSD rats by inhibiting ferroptosis in the prefrontal cortex.

    Keywords: post-stroke depression, Electroacupuncture, ferroptosis, depression-like behavior, iron accumulation

    Received: 24 Apr 2024; Accepted: 19 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Gao, Feng, Wu, Ding, Qi, Yu, Wu, Zheng, Qin, Tang, Wang, Feng and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Xiaodong Feng, First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China

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