Sha-Sha Yi: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Jun-Jie Zou: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Long Meng: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Hou-Minji Chen: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Zhong-Qiu Hong: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Xiu-Fang Liu: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Umar Farooq: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Mo-Xian Chen: School of Rehabilitation, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, China.
Zheng-Rong Lin: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Wei Zhou: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Li-Juan Ao: School of Rehabilitation, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, China.
Xi-Quan Hu: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Li-Li Niu: Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China.
Increasing evidence indicates that inflammatory responses may influence brain neurochemical pathways, inducing depressive-like behaviors. Ultrasound stimulation (US) is a promising non-invasive treatment for neuropsychiatric diseases. We investigated whether US can suppress inflammation and improve depressive-like behaviors. Mice were intraperitoneally injected with lipopolysaccharide to induce depressive-like behaviors. Ultrasound wave was delivered into the prefrontal cortex (PFC) for 30 min. Depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors were evaluated through the forced swimming test (FST), tail suspension test (TST), and elevated plus maze (EPM). Biochemical analyses were performed to assess the expression of inflammatory cytokines in the PFC and serum. The results indicated that US of the PFC significantly improved depressive-like behaviors in the TST ( < 0.05) and FST ( < 0.05). Anxiety-like behaviors also improved in the EPM ( < 0.05). Furthermore, the lipopolysaccharide-mediated upregulation of IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α in the PFC was significantly reduced ( < 0.05) by US. In addition, no tissue damage was observed. Overall, US of PFC can effectively improve lipopolysaccharide-induced depressive-like behaviors, possibly through the downregulation of inflammatory cytokines in the PFC. US may be a safe and promising tool for improvement of depression.
