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Sancho-Balsells A, Borràs-Pernas S, Flotta F, Chen W, Del Toro D, Rodríguez MJ, Alberch J, Blivet G, Touchon J, Xifró X, Giralt A. Brain-gut photobiomodulation restores cognitive alterations in chronically stressed mice through the regulation of Sirt1 and neuroinflammation. J Affect Disord 2024; 354:574-588. [PMID: 38490587 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2024] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chronic stress is an important risk factor for the development of major depressive disorder (MDD). Recent studies have shown microbiome dysbiosis as one of the pathogenic mechanisms associated with MDD. Thus, it is important to find novel non-pharmacological therapeutic strategies that can modulate gut microbiota and brain activity. One such strategy is photobiomodulation (PBM), which involves the non-invasive use of light. OBJECTIVE/HYPOTHESIS Brain-gut PBM could have a synergistic beneficial effect on the alterations induced by chronic stress. METHODS We employed the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) protocol to induce a depressive-like state in mice. Subsequently, we administered brain-gut PBM for 6 min per day over a period of 3 weeks. Following PBM treatment, we examined behavioral, structural, molecular, and cellular alterations induced by CUMS. RESULTS We observed that the CUMS protocol induces profound behavioral alterations and an increase of sirtuin1 (Sirt1) levels in the hippocampus. We then combined the stress protocol with PBM and found that tissue-combined PBM was able to rescue cognitive alterations induced by CUMS. This rescue was accompanied by a restoration of hippocampal Sirt1 levels, prevention of spine density loss in the CA1 of the hippocampus, and the modulation of the gut microbiome. PBM was also effective in reducing neuroinflammation and modulating the morphology of Iba1-positive microglia. LIMITATIONS The molecular mechanisms behind the beneficial effects of tissue-combined PBM are not fully understood. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that non-invasive photobiomodulation of both the brain and the gut microbiome could be beneficial in the context of stress-induced MDD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Sancho-Balsells
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Sara Borràs-Pernas
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain
| | - Francesca Flotta
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain
| | - Wanqi Chen
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain
| | - Daniel Del Toro
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel J Rodríguez
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain
| | - Jordi Alberch
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain; Production and Validation Centre of Advanced Therapies (Creatio), Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | | | | | - Xavier Xifró
- New Therapeutic Targets Group, Department of Medical Science, Faculty of Medicine, Universitat de Girona, Girona, Spain.
| | - Albert Giralt
- Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina, Institut de Neurociències, Universitat de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), 28031 Madrid, Spain.
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Yin X, Zhao Y, Wang S, Feng H, He X, Li X, Liu X, Lu H, Wen D, Shi Y, Shi H. Postweaning stress affects behavior, brain and gut microbiota of adolescent mice in a sex-dependent manner. Neuropharmacology 2024; 248:109869. [PMID: 38354850 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2024.109869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024]
Abstract
Aggression is an instinctive behavior that has been reported to be influenced by early-life stress. However, the potential effects of acute stress during the postweaning period, a key stage for brain development, on defensive aggression and the associated mechanism remain poorly understood. In the present study, aggressive behaviors were evaluated in adolescent mice exposed to postweaning stress. Serum corticosterone and testosterone levels, neural dendritic spine density, and gut microbiota composition were determined to identify the underlying mechanism. Behavioral analysis showed that postweaning stress reduced locomotor activity in mice and decreased defensive aggression in male mice. ELISA results showed that postweaning stress reduced serum testosterone levels in female mice. Golgi staining analysis demonstrated that postweaning stress decreased neural dendritic spine density in the medial prefrontal cortex of male mice. 16S rRNA sequencing results indicated that postweaning stress altered the composition of the gut microbiota in male mice. Combined, these results suggested that postweaning stress alters defensive aggression in male mice, which may be due to changes in neuronal structure as well as gut microbiota composition. Our findings highlight the long-lasting and sex-dependent effects of early-life experience on behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xueyong Yin
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Ye Zhao
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Shuang Wang
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Hao Feng
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Xinyue He
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Xincheng Li
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Xiaoyu Liu
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Hengtai Lu
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Di Wen
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Forensic Medicine, Hebei Province, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China
| | - Yun Shi
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China.
| | - Haishui Shi
- Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Medical and Health Science, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Forensic Medicine, Hebei Province, Shijiazhuang, 050017, China; Nursing School, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050031, China.
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He H, Zhao Z, Xiao C, Li L, Liu YE, Fu J, Liao H, Zhou T, Zhang J. Gut microbiome promotes mice recovery from stress-induced depression by rescuing hippocampal neurogenesis. Neurobiol Dis 2024; 191:106396. [PMID: 38176570 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Studies from rodents to primates and humans indicate that individuals vary in how resilient they are to stress, and understanding the basis of these variations may help improve treatments for depression. Here we explored the potential contribution of the gut microbiome to such variation. Mice were exposed to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) for 4 weeks then allowed to recover for 3 weeks, after which they were subjected to behavioral tests and categorized as showing low or high stress resilience. The two types of mouse were compared in terms of hippocampal gene expression using RNA sequencing, fecal microbiomes using 16S RNA sequencing, and extent of neurogenesis in the hippocampus using immunostaining of brain sections. Fecal microbiota were transplanted from either type of mouse into previously stress-exposed and stress-naïve animals, and the effects of the transplantation on stress-induced behaviors and neurogenesis in the hippocampus were examined. Finally, we blocked neurogenesis using temozolomide to explore the role of neurogenesis promoted by fecal microbiota transplantation in enhancing resilience to stress. Results showed that highly stress-resilient mice, but not those with low resilience, improved significantly on measures of anhedonia, behavioral despair, and anxiety after 3-week recovery from CUMS. Their feces showed greater abundance of Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Romboutsia than feces from mice with low stress resilience, as well as lower abundance of Staphylococcus, Psychrobacter and Corynebacterium. Similarly, highly stress-resilient mice showed greater neurogenesis in hippocampus than animals with low stress resilience. Transplanting fecal microbiota from mice with high stress resilience into previously CUMS-exposed recipients rescued neurogenesis in hippocampus, facilitating recovery from stress-induced depression and cognitive decline. Blockade of neurogenesis with temozolomide abolished recovery of recipients from CUMS-induced depression and cognitive decline in mice transplanted with fecal microbiota from mice with high stress resilience. In conclusion, our results suggested that remodeling of the gut microbiome after stress may reverse stress-induced impairment of hippocampal neurogenesis and thereby promote recovery from stress-induced depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haili He
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Zhihuang Zhao
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Chenghong Xiao
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Liangyuan Li
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Yu-E Liu
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Juan Fu
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Hongyu Liao
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Tao Zhou
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China.
| | - Jinqiang Zhang
- Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang 550025, China.
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