title: Schisandra chinensisandRhodiola roseaexert an anti-stress effect on the HPA axis and reduce hypothalamic c-Fos expression in rats subjected to repeated stress.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects ofSchisandra chinensis(S. chinensis) andRhodiola rosea(R. rosea) on rats subjected to 5 h of stress, induced by water-floating followed by treadmill exercise. Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) activity and c-Fos and Fos-related antigen 2 (Fra-2) mRNA expression levels in the hypothalamus of the rats were evaluated. Rats were distributed into four groups:S. chinensis(n=12),R. rosea(n=10), stress control (n=10) and quiet control (n=8). Following a training period of 6 consecutive days, theS. chinensis,R. roseaand stress control groups underwent a 3-h water-floating session in the presence of feline predators immediately followed by 2 h treadmill running to induce psychological and physical stress. Following compound stress induction, the serum levels of corticosterone (CORT), adrenocorticotropic hormone and interleukin-1β and the mRNA expression levels of hypothalamic corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), neuropeptide-Y, c-Fos and Fra-2 were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, radioimmunoassay and quantitative polymerase chain reaction, respectively. The results indicated thatS. chinensisandR. roseamarkedly decreased the stress-induced elevation of CRH and peripheral CORT levels. The mRNA expression levels of c-Fos and Fra-2 in the hypothalamus were significantly increased after 5 h compound stress, and reduced levels of c-Fos expression were detected in rats treated withR. rosea. Thus,S. chinensisandR. roseaexert an anti-stress effect in rats subjected to stress by balancing the HPA axis, and possibly by reducing the expression of c-Fos in the hypothalamus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210002, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210002, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210002, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Hongwei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210002, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210002, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yangtian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: Rhodiola rosea; Schisandra chinensis; hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis; immediate early genes; stress