| Brain ageing alters brain responses to stress, playing an essential role in the
pathophysiology of late-life depression. Moreover, apoptotic activity is up-regulated
in the prefrontal cortex in ageing and stress-related mood disorders. Considerable
evidence suggests that factors in young blood could reverse age-related dysfunctions
in organs, especially in the brain. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of
young plasma administration on depressive behaviours in aged rats exposed to
chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS), with a focus on the apoptosis process.
Young (3 months old) and aged (22 months old) male rats were randomly assigned
into four groups: young control (YC), aged control (AC), aged rats subjected to
CUMS (A+CUMS) and aged rats subjected to CUMS and treated with young plasma
(A+CUMS+YP). In the A+CUMS and A+CUMS+YP groups, CUMS was used to
generate the depression rat model. Moreover, the A+CUMS+YP group received
pooled plasma (1 ml, intravenously), collected from young rats, three times per week
for 4 weeks. Young plasma administration significantly improved CUMS-induced
depression-like behaviours, including decreased sucrose consumption ratio, reduced
locomotor activity and prolonged immobility time. Importantly, young plasma reduced
neuronal apoptosis in the prefrontal cortex that was associated with reduced TUNELpositive
cells and cleaved caspase-3 protein levels in the A+CUMS+YP comparedwith
the A+CUMS group. Young plasma can partially improve the neuropathology of latelife
depression through the apoptotic signalling pathways. |