title: Effects of Sumsu (Bufonis venenum) Pharmacopuncture Treatment on Depression in Mice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The main objective of this study was to evaluate the anti-depressant effects of pharmacopuncture using sumsu (Bufonis venenum).
  
  
  METHODS
  Animals were divided into three groups (control, sham, and experimental), with eight mice per group. The sham and the experimental groups were exposed to 2 hours of immobilization stress daily for 14 days. They were also injected with normal saline (sham) or subjected to pharmacopuncture with sumsu at the acupoints HT7, SP6, and GV20 (experimental). The depression or anxiety-like behaviors of the mice in each group were evaluated 1 day after treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no difference in locomotor activity between the groups during the open-field test; i.e., all groups had normal motor function. However, the open-field and the forced-swimming tests revealed that depression and anxiety-like behaviors were decreased significantly in the group treated with sumsu pharmacopuncture.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Sumsu pharmacopuncture attenuated depressive or anxiety-like behavior in mice stressed with chronic immobilization. These results suggest that sumsu pharmacopuncture has therapeutic potential for treating neuropsychiatric disorders such as anxiety or depression disorder.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Min-Ji
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ka-Na
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jae-Eun
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jin-Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Suh
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture & Moxibustion, Wonkwang Gwangju Oriental Medical Hospital, Gwangju, Korea.
authors.forename: Sung-Chul
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Research Center of Pharmacopuncture Medicine, Korean Pharmacopuncture Institute, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ki Rok
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea ; Department of Neuropsychiatry, Hospital of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung-Hun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Cho
keywords: Bufonis venenum; antidepressants; chronic immobilization stress; forced-swimming test; open-field test; pharmacopuncture