ABSTRACT
Aim To investigate the changes of behav-iors,neurotransmitters and depression related gene ex-pressions in hippocampus of C57BL/6 mice after olfac-tory bulbectomy (OB).Methods Forced swimming test (FST),tail suspension test (TST),open filed test (OFT),and elevated plus maze test (EPMT) were used to evaluate the behavioral changes 18 days after surgery. LC-MS/MS method was employed to measure the hippocampal neurotransmitters.Quantita-tive PCR approach was established to determine the hippocampal gene expressions associated with depres-sion.Results OB mice were hyperactive in OFT (P<0.05 ) accompanied with increased time spent in open arm of EPMT (P<0.01).Meanwhile,the sur-gery led to the reduction of the ratio of 5-HIAA/5-HT (P <0.01 ) but the increase of Glu/GABA (P <0.01 ) in hippocampus.Moreover,OB elevated the gene expressions of BDNF,Trkb,GDNF,CD1 1 b and TNF-αbut down-regulated that of TPH2 in hippocam-pus (P<0.05 ).Conclusion Behavioral alternation of OB mice was a result of comprehensive effect of the changes of neurotransmission and depression related genes,which call us special attention in using OB as an animal model for research and development of anti-depressants.