Crassifoside H ameliorates depressant behavior in chronic unpredictable mild stress rats by improving HPA axis dysfunction and inhibiting inflammation in hippocampus

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the antidepressant mechanism of action of Crassifoside H (CH) from the rhizomes of Curculigo glabrescens (Hypoxidaceae) in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)induced rats. Methods: CUMS-induced rat depressant model was established. Behavioral tests, viz, sucrose preference test (SPT), open field test (OFT) and forced swimming test (FST) were applied to assess the antidepressant effect of CH. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to assess the levels of corticosterone (CORT), TNF-α and IL-1β in serum. Protein expressions of TNF-α, IL-1β and NLRP3 in rat hippocampus were determined by Western blot. Results: Crassifoside H significantly ameliorated CUMS-induced depressant-like behavior as the serum CORT level of CUMS rats. CH remarkably decreased TNF-α and IL-1β levels in serum and hippocampus of CUMS rats. Moreover, Crassifoside H significantly inhibited NLRP3 activation in hippocampus. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that Crassifoside H has antidepressant effect on CUMS rats. The mechanism of action of CH may be at least partly due to the improvement of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction by decreasing serum CORT. These findings suggest that Crassifoside H has a therapeutic potential for the management of depression.