ArticleMedical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research2021
Acupuncture Can Play an Antidepressant Role by Regulating the Intestinal Microbes and Neurotransmitters in a Rat Model of Depression.
Article in Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 52 citations in OpenAlex.
- Relationship Between Depression and Epigallocatechin Gallate from the Perspective of Gut Microbiota: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy and mechanism of acupuncture in animal models of depressive-like behaviors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Pooled it
- Acupuncture in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Narrative Review of Neurotransmitter Regulation and Neuroplasticity.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- Gut microbiota as a therapeutic target in sepsis-induced multi-organ dysfunction: a review.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2026Review
- Acupuncture as a potential host-directed therapeutic strategy in neuroinfectious diseases: a neuroimmune mechanistic perspective.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Application of dietary training combined with acupuncture based on syndrome differentiation for treating dysphagia in stroke rehabilitation patients.Archives of medical science : AMS · 2026Article
- Does the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis Mediate the Antidepressant Effects of Acupuncture? A Structured Review of Preclinical and Clinical Evidence.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2026Review
- Acupuncture's Regulatory Role in Glial Cells and Their Interactions for Antidepressant Effects: A Review of Research Progress.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2026Review
- Acupuncture's Multisystem Neuroimmunomodulation: Central-Peripheral Interactions in Gastroenteric, Psychiatric, and Chronic Pain Disorders.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2025Review
- Multi-Omics Integration Reveals Electroacupuncture Ameliorates Cognitive Impairment in Alzheimer's Disease via Gut-Brain Axis.Biomolecules · 2025Article
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of microbiota-gut-astrocyte axis perturbation in neurodegeneration, brain injury, and mood disorders.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2025Review
- Mechanisms of acupuncture in treating depression: a review.Chinese medicine · 2025Review
- Acupuncture for Adolescent Depression Disorder: protocol for a randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Electroacupuncture as adjunctive therapy for insomnia via targeting the GABAergic microbiota-gut-brain axis: a mini review.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Review
- Research Advances in Multimodal Framework-Based Identification and Therapeutic Management of Post-Stroke Depression via the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2025Review
- Acupuncture may play a key role in anti-depression through various mechanisms in depression.Chinese medicine · 2024Review
- Acupuncture and moxibustion intervention in functional dyspepsia: Gastric and duodenal regulation.Heliyon · 2024Review
- Article
- Acupuncture Ameliorates Depression-Like Behaviors Through Modulating the Neuroinflammation Mediated by TLR4 Signaling Pathway in Rats Exposed to Chronic Restraint Stress.Molecular neurobiology · 2024Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND Acupuncture, which has many good effects and few adverse effects, is widely recognized as an alternative therapy for depression in clinical practice. This study aimed to explore the mechanism of acupuncture in antidepressant treatment. MATERIAL AND METHODS In this experiment, Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: control, chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS), acupuncture, and fluoxetine groups. The CUMS, acupuncture, and fluoxetine groups were orphaned and subjected to chronic unpredictable stress for 6 weeks, and the acupuncture and fluoxetine groups were treated with their respective intervention in weeks 4-6. The body weight of rats was monitored weekly. After behavioral tests were completed, serum, feces, and hippocampal tissue of rats were collected. RESULTS The results showed that the acupuncture and fluoxetine treatments could alleviate the behavioral changes caused by CUMS. The treatments increased the total distance of rat crossing in the open-field test, prolonged the activity time of the open cross maze in the open arm, and improved the rate of sucrose consumption in the sucrose preference test. In addition, both the decreased level of dopamine (DA) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in serum and hippocampus caused by CUMS were improved after the treatments with acupuncture and fluoxetine, and the decreased expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor signaling and the astrocytes in the hippocampus caused by CUMS were increased after the treatments with acupuncture and fluoxetine. Acupuncture and fluoxetine also decreased the ß isoform of calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II in the hippocampus, which was increased by CUMS. Furthermore, acupuncture regulated intestinal microbial disorders caused by CUMS, which reduced the relative abundance ratio of Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes in rats. CONCLUSIONS Our experimental results indicate that acupuncture can alleviate depression-like performance in CUMS rats by regulating intestinal microbes and neurotransmitters.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.