Efficacy of Probiotic Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 in Counteracting Reserpine-induced Depression-like Symptoms and Neuroinflammation in Zebrafish.

Background: Depression is emerging as a significant global public health concern. Methods: Reserpine, an obsolete antihypertensive medicine known to cause neurotoxicity, was used to induce depression-like symptoms in adult zebrafish. Our experimental approach encompassed various stages, including behavior assessment, histological examination, antioxidant assays, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: Reserpine exposure resulted in significant behavioral deficits, increased oxidative stress, neuronal damage, and elevated pro-inflammatory cytokine levels in the zebrafish brain. EcN treatment significantly improved locomotor and exploratory behaviors and restored social preference compared with the reserpine group ( Conclusions: EcN significantly attenuated reserpine-induced depression-like behavior, oxidative stress, neuronal damage, and neuroinflammation in adult zebrafish, as evidenced by statistically significant improvements in behavioral, biochemical, and inflammatory endpoints. These findings support EcN as a promising psychobiotic with antidepressant-like properties, warranting further mechanistic and translational investigations.