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Review
. 2024 Aug 26:15:1426769.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1426769. eCollection 2024.

The therapeutic potential of traditional Chinese medicine in depression: focused on the modulation of neuroplasticity

Shimeng Lv  1 , Ni Yang  1 , Yitong Lu  1 , Guangheng Zhang  1 , Xia Zhong  2 , Yaru Cui  3 , Yufei Huang  4 , Jing Teng  1 , Yanyan Sai  5
Affiliations
Review

The therapeutic potential of traditional Chinese medicine in depression: focused on the modulation of neuroplasticity

Shimeng Lv et al. Front Pharmacol. .

Abstract

Depression, a mood disorder characterized by a persistent low mood and lack of enjoyment, is considered the leading cause of non-fatal health losses worldwide. Neuroplasticity refers to the brain's ability to adapt to external or internal stimuli, resulting in functional and structural changes. This process plays a crucial role in the development of depression. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) shows significant potential as a complementary and alternative therapy for neurological diseases, including depression. However, there has been no systematic summary of the role of neuroplasticity in the pathological development of depression and TCM Interventions currently. This review systematically summarized recent literature on changes in neuroplasticity in depression and analyzed the regulatory mechanisms of active metabolites in TCM and TCM formulas on neuroplasticity in antidepressant treatment. Additionally, this review discussed the limitations of current research and the application prospects of TCM in regulating neuroplasticity in antidepressant research.

Keywords: antidepressant; depression; major depressive disorder; neuroplasticity; traditional Chinese medicine.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Schematic diagram of neurogenesis in structural plasticity.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Neuroplasticity regulatory mechanisms.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
The pharmacological mechanism of TCM regulation of neuroplasticity in the treatment of depression. The red arrow indicates changes caused by stress, while the green arrow indicates changes caused by TCM.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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Grants and funding

The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by the Shandong Province Special Disease Prevention Project of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine (YXH2019ZXY006) and Academic Project for College Students of Shandong Province Youth Education Science Planning Project (24BSH467).

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