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Updated: Jul 20, 2025

DNBS/TNBS Colitis Models: Providing Insights Into Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Effects of Dietary Fat
Published on: February 27, 2014
Niacin modulates depressive-like behavior in experimental colitis through GPR109A-dependent mechanisms
Walaa Wadie1, Sarah S Mohamed1, Enas A Abd El-Haleim1
1Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Egypt.
Aims:
Depression is one of the common neurological comorbidities in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The current study aimed to investigate the potential impact of niacin on colitis-induced depressive-like behavior in rats.
Materials And Methods:
Animals were given 5 % dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) in drinking water for one week to induce colitis. Niacin (80 mg/kg), with or without mepenzolate bromide (GPR109A blocker), was administered once per day throughout the experimental period. Rats were tested for behavioral changes using open field and forced swimming tests.
Key Findings:
Niacin significantly ameliorated DSS-induced behavioral deficits and alleviated macroscopic and microscopic colonic inflammatory changes. It also augmented the hippocampal levels of ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-5 proteins, indicating the ability of niacin to restore the blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity. Moreover, niacin decreased hippocampal IL-1ꞵ and NF-ĸB contents but increased GSH, Sirt-1, Nrf-2, HO-1 concentrations. All these beneficial effects were partially abolished by the co-administration of mepenzolate bromide.
Significance:
The neuroprotective effect of niacin against DSS-induced depressive-like behavior was partially mediated through GPR109A-mediated mechanisms. Such mechanisms are also involved in modulating neuronal oxidative stress and inflammation via Sirt-1/Nrf-2/HO-1 signaling pathways.
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