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  • Taurine Alleviates Chronic Social Defeat Stress-Induced Depression by Protecting Cortical Neurons from Dendritic Spine Loss.

Taurine Alleviates Chronic Social Defeat Stress-Induced Depression by Protecting Cortical Neurons from Dendritic Spine Loss.

Cellular and molecular neurobiology (2022-04-19)
Yuanyuan Zhu, Rui Wang, Ze Fan, Danlei Luo, Guohong Cai, Xinyang Li, Jiao Han, Lixia Zhuo, Li Zhang, Haifeng Zhang, Yan Li, Shengxi Wu
ABSTRACT

Abnormal amino acid metabolism in neural cells is involved in the occurrence and development of major depressive disorder. Taurine is an important amino acid required for brain development. Here, microdialysis combined with metabonomic analysis revealed that the level of taurine in the extracellular fluid of the cerebral medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was significantly reduced in mice with chronic social defeat stress (CSDS)-induced depression. Therefore, taurine supplementation may be usable an intervention for depression. We found that taurine supplementation effectively rescued immobility time during a tail suspension assay and improved social avoidance behaviors in CSDS mice. Moreover, taurine treatment protected CSDS mice from impairments in dendritic complexity, spine density, and the proportions of different types of spines. The expression of N-methyl D-aspartate receptor subunit 2A, an important synaptic receptor, was largely restored in the mPFC of these mice after taurine supplementation. These results demonstrated that taurine exerted an antidepressive effect by protecting cortical neurons from dendritic spine loss and synaptic protein deficits.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-Taurine (No Gluteraldehyde) Antibody, diluted serum, Chemicon®
Sigma-Aldrich
Anti-NMDAR2A Antibody, Chemicon®, from rabbit