ArticleExperimental brain research2020
Metformin improves depressive-like symptoms in mice via inhibition of peripheral and central NF-κB-NLRP3 inflammation activation.
Article in Experimental brain research, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 25 citations in OpenAlex.
- Metformin Ameliorates Cognitive Deficits and Neuroinflammation in a Mouse Model of Familial Hypercholesterolemia.Neurochemical research · 2026Article
- NLRP3 inflammasomes pathway: a key target for Metformin.Inflammopharmacology · 2025Review
- Mitochondria and the Repurposing of Diabetes Drugs for Off-Label Health Benefits.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Environmental Enrichment and Metformin Combination Improves Cognitive Function through BDNF and HPA Axis in Chronically Stressed Rats.Current Alzheimer research · 2025Article
- Brain inflammaging in the pathogenesis of late-life depression.Human cell · 2024Review
- Effect of a high dose atorvastatin as added-on therapy on symptoms and serum AMPK/NLRP3 inflammasome and IL-6/STAT3 axes in patients with major depressive disorder: randomized controlled clinical study.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2024Article
- TET2 deficiency promotes anxiety and depression-like behaviors by activating NLRP3/IL-1β pathway in microglia of allergic rhinitis mice.Molecular medicine (Cambridge, Mass.) · 2023Article
- NF-κB/NLRP3 inflammasome axis and risk of Parkinson's disease in Type 2 diabetes mellitus: A narrative review and new perspective.Journal of cellular and molecular medicine · 2023Review
- The Role and Mechanism of Metformin in Inflammatory Diseases.Journal of inflammation research · 2023Review
- Metformin reduces chondrocyte pyroptosis in an osteoarthritis mouse model by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation.Experimental and therapeutic medicine · 2022Article
- Metformin Treatment Attenuates Brain Inflammation and Rescues PACAP/VIP Neuropeptide Alterations in Mice Fed a High-Fat Diet.International journal of molecular sciences · 2021Article
- Metformin attenuates sepsis-induced neuronal injury and cognitive impairment.BMC neuroscience · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Emerging evidence indicates that NLRP3 inflammasome-induced inflammation plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of depression. Thus, inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome activation may offer a therapeutic benefit in the treatment of depression. Metformin has been shown to have potential anti-inflammatory activity, but the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. We used a chronic mild stress model of depression and cultured primary macrophage to investigate the effects of metformin on depression and its underlying mechanisms. We demonstrated that metformin alleviated depressive-like behaviors in the chronic mild stress-induced anhedonia model of depression. We further found that metformin significantly suppressed NLRP3 inflammasome activation, subsequent caspase-1 cleavage, and interleukin-1β secretion in both peripheral macrophages and central hippocampus. Our findings reveal that metformin confers an antidepressant effect partly through inhibition of peripheral and central NLRP3 inflammasome activation. In light of metformin favorable properties, it should be evaluated in the treatment of depression and related neurologic disorders characterized by NLRP3 inflammasome activation.
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