Orexin prevents depressive-like behavior by promoting stress resilience.

ABSTRACT: Hypothalamic neuropeptide orexin has been implicated in the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders and accumulating clinical evidence indicates a potential link between orexin and depression. However, the exact role of orexin in depression, particularly the underlying neural substrates and mechanisms, remains unknown. In this study, we reveal a direct projection from the hypothalamic orexinergic neurons to the ventral pallidum (VP), a structure that receives an increasing attention for its critical position in rewarding processing, stress responses, and depression. We find that orexin directly excites GABAergic VP neurons and prevents depressive-like behaviors in rats. Two orexin receptors, OX1R and OX2R, and their downstream Na⁺-Ca²⁺ exchanger and L-type Ca^2+<

SUBMITTER: Ji MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6755988 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature