IMR Press / JIN / Volume 22 / Issue 4 / DOI: 10.31083/j.jin2204098
Open Access Original Research
Malic Acid Improves Behavioral, Biochemical, and Molecular Disturbances in the Hypothalamus of Stressed Rats
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1 Department of Medical Physiology, Medical Research and Clinical Studies Institute, National Research Centre, Dokki, 12622 Giza, Egypt
2 Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, 12211 Giza, Egypt
*Correspondence: kkoriem@yahoo.com (Khaled M. M. Koriem)
J. Integr. Neurosci. 2023, 22(4), 98; https://doi.org/10.31083/j.jin2204098
Submitted: 27 March 2023 | Revised: 7 May 2023 | Accepted: 9 May 2023 | Published: 17 July 2023
Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s). Published by IMR Press.
This is an open access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Abstract

Background: Stress can lead to emotional and mental symptoms such as anxiety, sadness, panic attacks, and depression. Malic acid was chosen due to malic acid has the ability to improve antioxidant activity and improves liver damage. This study evaluates malic acid anti-depressant activity in the hypothalamus of stressed rats. Methods: Thirty-six male albino rats were divided into 2 equal groups; Normal and chronic mild stress (CMS) rats. Normal rats were divided into 3 equal groups; control, malic acid, and venlafaxine drug groups: normal rats were administered orally with 1 mL of saline solution, 250 mg/kg of malic acid, and 20 mg/kg of venlafaxine drug, respectively. CMS rats were divided into 3 equal groups; CMS, CMS + malic acid, and CMS + venlafaxine drug: CMS rats were administered orally with 1 mL of saline solution, 250 mg/kg of malic acid, and 20 mg/kg of venlafaxine drug, respectively. All the above-mentioned treatments were administered once a day by oral gavage for 6 weeks. Results: The obtained results revealed that the animal behavioral tests such as forced swimming test, tail suspension test, sucrose preference test, and open-field test (center square entries test, center square duration test, and distance travelled test), norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, γ-aminobutyric acid, nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase activity, oxidative index, conjugated dienes, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, malondialdehyde, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-10, interleukin-1β, sodium/potassium-ATPase activity, and histamine-N-methyl transferase (Hnmt) and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) enzymes in the hypothalamus of stressed rats, were returned to approaching the normal state in the stressed group after treating with malic acid for 6 weeks. Conclusions: Malic acid ameliorated stressed-related symptoms and it inhibited superoxide anion and neuro-inflammation in the hypothalamus of stressed rats.

Keywords
stress
antioxidants
neurotransmitters
inflammation
histology
Figures
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