Abstract:

 Objective   To investigate expression of fibroblast growth factor2(FGF-2) in the brain of post stroke depression(PSD) rats, and the relationship between FGF-2 and PSD. Methods   A rat stroke model was established by means of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO), and then rats were randomly divided into the experimental group and the control group. The experimental group consisted of PSD rats established by means of separation and chronic unpredictable mild stress(CMS), post stroke rats were used as controls. Western blot was used to analyze protein expression of FGF-2 in the frontal lobe and hippocampus tissues. Expression of fgf-2 mRNA was determined in the rat frontal lobe tissue by real-time quantitative PCR. Results   Expression levels of FGF-2 and fgf-2 mRNA in the frontal lobe tissue were significantly lower in the experimental group than in the control group(P<0.01). Protein expression of FGF-2 in the hippocampus showed no significant difference between the two groups(P>0.05) . Conclusion   Decreased expression of FGF-2 in the rat frontal lobe is one of the reasons for PSD.

Key words: Frontal lobe; Hippocampus; Depression, stroke; Fibroblast growth factor 2