Table 1 Phytochemicals with anti-depressive effects in stress-induced depressive animals and their possible molecular mechanisms
| Name | Experimental model | Effects | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apigenin (Carduus crispus; Elsholtzia rugulosa) | Corticosterone induced depression | ↑BDNF | Weng |
| Baicalein (The root of Scutellaria baicalensis) | Chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) | ↑BDNF, ↑pERK | Xiong |
| Curcumin (Curcuma longa) | Chronic mild stress (CMS)/CUMS | ↑BDNF, ↑p-ERK | Xu |
| Cytisine (Natural plant alkaloid) | CUMS | ↑pCREB, ↑BDNF, ↑pAkt, ↑pmTOR(p70s6k) | Han |
| 7,8-dihydroxyflavone (Godmania aesculifolia) | CMS | ↑BDNF | Chang |
| Dihydromyricetin (Ampelopsis grossedentata) | CUMS | ↑ERK1/2-CREB pathway, ↑pGSK-3β(ser9), ↑BDNF | Ren |
| S-equol (Soy isoflavone metabolite) | LPS challenge | ↑pSYN, ↑SYN, ↑PSD95 | Lu |
| Fisetin (Strawberry extract) | Chronic restraint stress | ↑TrkB signaling, ↑pTrkB | Wang |
| (-)-Gallocatechin gallate (high-temperature-processed green tea extract) | Ovariectomized rats | ↑TrkB pathway, ameliorates the synaptic impairments |
Ko |
| Gallic acid (Gallnuts, sumac, witch hazel, tea leaves, oak bark, and other plants) | CMS | ↑BDNF, ↑pTrkB, ↑mTOR (p70s6k and 4E-BP-1) | Zhu |
| Hesperidin (Hemerocallis citrina) | CUMS | ↑pERK1/2, ↑BDNF/TrkB pathways | Li |
| Honokiol (Magnolia officinalis) | CUMS | ↑BDNF | Wang |
| Hyperforin (Hypericum perforatum L.) | CUMS | ↑BDNF | Szewczyk |
| Isorhynchophylline (The stem of Uncaria rhynchophylla) | CUMS | Modulating the PI3K/AKT/GSK-3β | Xian |
| Malvidin3′-O-glucoside (Vaccinium arboreum) | Repeated social defeat stress model | ↑ |
Wang |
| Naringenin (Abundantly present in the peel of citrus fruits) | CUMS | ↑BDNF | Yi |
| Nobiletin (Citrus fruits) | CUMS | ↑BDNF/TrkB pathways | Li |
| Oleanolic acid (Olive oil) | CUMS | BDNF/ERK/CREB signalling miR-132 | Yi |
| Paeoniflorin (Radix paeoniae) | CUMS | ↑BDNF, ↑p-CREB | Hu |
| Psilocybin (Psilocybe, such as P. azurescens, P. semilanceata, and P. cyanescens) | Chronic multimodal stress paradigm | Promote synaptic strengthens hippocampal TA-CA1 synapses | Hesselgrave |
| Puerarin ( |
Spared nerve injury-induced mice | Activating ERK/CREB/BDNF pathways | Zhao |
| Quercetin (Rosa Chinensis Jacq. Hypericum perforatum) | LPS challenge | ↑BDNF, ↑pTrkB | Fang |
| Resveratrol (Polygonum cuspidatum) | CUMS | ↑pmTOR, ↑pAkt, ↑ERK, ↑pCREB, ↑BDNF, ↑Synaptophysin | liu |
| Ginsenoside Rg1 (Panax ginseng) | CUMS | ↑BDNF, ↑p-CREB, ↑p-PKA, ↑PSD95, ↑Synaptic plasticity fators (miR-134↓, Limk1↑, p-cofilin↑), ↑Spine density, ↑Synapse number | Liu |
| Ginsenoside Rg2, Rg3, Rg5 (Panax ginseng) | CUMS/chronic social defeat stress | ↑BDNF, ↑pTrkB, ↑pCREB | Ren |
| Ginsenoside Rh (Panax ginseng) | LPS challenge | ↑BDNF↑, ↑TrkB | Chen |
| Rutin (Hypericum perforatum L.) | Maternal Separation Stress-induced mice | ↓NR2B, ↓NR2A, ↑CA3 diameter | Anjomshoa |
| Saikosaponin A (Bupleurum chinense DC.) | CUMS | ↑BDNF/TrkB pathways | Chen |
| Saikosaponin D (Bupleurum chinense DC.) | CUMS | ↑pCREB, ↑BDNF | Li |
| Schisantherin B (Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.)) | Forced swimming test-induced mice | ↑GLT-1by promoting PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway | Xu |
| Silibinin (Silybum marianum) | LPS challenge | ↓Neuronal loss, ↑BDNF/TrkB pathways | Song |
| Sulforaphane (Cruciferous vegetables) | LPS challenge | Alteration of BDNF, PSD95, GluA1, dendritic spine density | Zhang |
| Tetramethylpyrazine (Ligusticum wallichii) | Chronic social defeat stress model | ↑pCREB, ↑BDNF, ↑pERK, ↑pAKT | Jiang |