Electroacupuncture promotes neural proliferation in hippocampus of perimenopausal depression rats via Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway

Abstract Perimenopausal depression is caused by the impaired function of the ovarium piror to menopause and with a series of symptoms. Electroacupuncture (EA) therapy has been demonstrated to improve clinically depression. However, the mechanism underlying its therapeutic activity remains unknown. This study used chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) combined with bilateral ovariectomy (OVX) to establish a rat model of perimenopausal depression, and investigated the effects of EA treatment on the hippocampal neural proliferation. Four-week EA treatment at three points including “Shenshu” (BL 23), “Baihui” (DU 20) and “Sanyinjiao” (SP 6) simultaneously ameliorated depression-like behaviors in rats with CUMS and OVX, while rescued the decreased serum level of estrogen (E2) and prevented the increased serum levels of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), luteinizing hormone (LH). EA treatment ameliorated CUMS and OVX-induced alterations of glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) and β-catenin mRNA levels, β-catenin and phosphorylated β-catenin (p-β-catenin) protein levels. The results showed EA treatment promoted hippocampal neural proliferation in perimenopausal depression rats via activating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, indicating that EA may represent an efficacious therapy for perimenopausal depression.