Low-intensity focused ultrasound stimulation reverses social avoidance behavior in mice experiencing social defeat stress

Ultrasound Stimulation Attenuates CRS-Induced Depressive Behavior by Modulating Dopamine Release in the Prefrontal Cortex

Depression is one of the most serious mental disorders affecting modern human life and is often caused by chronic stress. Dopamine system dysfunction is proposed to contribute to the pathophysiology of chronic stress, especially the ventral tegmental area (VTA) which mainly consists of dopaminergic neurons. Focused ultrasound stimulation (FUS) is a promising neuromodulation modality and multiple studies have demonstrated effective ultrasonic activation of cortical, subcortical, and related networks. However, the effects of FUS on the dopamine system and the potential link to chronic stress-induced depressive behaviors are relatively unknown. Here, we measured the effects of FUS targeting VTA on the improvement of depression-like behavior and evaluated the dopamine concentration in the downstream region - medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). We found that targeting VTA FUS treatment alleviated chronic restraint stress (CRS) -induced anhedonia and despair behavior. Using an in vivo photometry approach, we analyzed the dopamine signal of mPFC and revealed a significant increase following the FUS, positively associated with the improvement of anhedonia behavior. FUS also protected the dopaminergic neurons in VTA from the damage caused by CRS exposure. Thus, these results demonstrated that targeting VTA FUS treatment significantly rescued the depressive-like behavior and declined dopamine level of mPFC induced by CRS. These beneficial effects of FUS might be due to protection in the DA neuron of VTA. Our findings suggest that FUS treatment could serve as a new therapeutic strategy for the treatment of stress-related disorders.

A Bibliometric Analysis for Low-Intensity Ultrasound Study Over the Past Three Decades

Low-intensity ultrasound (LI-US) is a non-invasive stimulation technique that has emerged in recent years and has been shown to have positive effects on neuromodulation, fracture healing, inflammation improvement, and metabolic regulation. This study reports the conclusions of a bibliometric analysis of LI-US. Input data for the period between 1995 and 2022, including 7209 related articles in the field of LI-US, were collected from the core library of the Web of Science (WOS) database. Using these data, a set of bibliometric indicators was obtained to gain knowledge on different aspects: global production, research areas, and sources analysis, contributions of countries and institutions, author analysis, citation analysis, and keyword analysis. This study combined the data analysis capabilities provided by the WOS database, making use of two bibliometric software tools: R software and VOS viewer to achieve analysis and data exploration visualization, and predicted the further development trends of LI-US. It turns out that the United States and China are co-leaders while Zhang ZG is the most significant author in LI-US. In the future, the hot spots of LI-US will continue to focus on parameter research, mechanism discussion, safety regulations, and neuromodulation applications.

Low-intensity focused ultrasound attenuates early traumatic brain injury by OX-A/NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious hazard to human health and is characterized by high rates of disability and mortality. It is necessary to explore new effective treatment methods to reduce the impact of TBI on individuals and society. As an emerging neuromodulation technique, ultrasound is used to treat some neurological diseases, but the neuroprotective mechanism of low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFUS) in TBI remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the protective effects and potential mechanisms of LIFUS in TBI.

Methods: A rat model of TBI was established using the free-fall method. After establishing the TBI model, the hypothalamus region was covered with LIFUS radiation, and an orexin receptor 1 (OXR1) antagonist (SB334867) was injected intraperitoneally. Neurobehavioral examination, Nissl staining, hematoxylin and eosin staining of the brain tissue, and brain water content, were performed 3 days later. Western blotting, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunofluorescence staining, and immunohistochemical staining, were used to evaluate the neuroprotective mechanisms of LIFUS.

Results: LIFUS improved tissue damage, neurological deficits, and brain edema. LIFUS can increase the expression of orexin-A (OX-A) and OXR1, significantly inhibit the activation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) protein and nucleotide-binding domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome after TBI, and reduce the release of pro-inflammatory factors after TBI; however, SB334867 can reverse this effect.

Conclusions: This study suggests that LIFUS may play a neuroprotective role by promoting the release of OX-A from the hypothalamus and inhibiting the inflammatory response after TBI through the OX-A /NF-κB/NLRP3 pathway.