ABSTRACT
Depression is one of the prevalent causes of health-related human suffering and is,first and foremost,a disorder of one of the least-studied biological phenomena:emotion.Therefore,it is critically important to understand emotion,in order to understand the etiology of depression.Chinese medicine is the oldest subject about emotion,has developed a theory about basic emotions and their interactions,and also their roles in causes and therapy in most of human diseases,including mental disorders,such as depression.Nowadays,major depressive disorder (MDD) is a prevalent mental disorder with cognitive,affective and behavioral symptoms,and has been identified as a leading cause of disability,and affecting about ～17％ of the populations worldwide.Decades of animal and clinical studies have pointed its etiology in dysfunctions in the monoamine transporters.Here we will review some literatures about the relationship between the monoamine neuromodulators and emotional theory in Chinese medicine,which might introduce theoretical perspectives in studies about emotion and depression.