Hydroxytyrosol proven to mitigate neuroinflammation and depression

Hydroxytyrosol proven to mitigate neuroinflammation and depression (Shuaiguang Li et al; Front Pharmacol. 2024) A recent publication demonstrated hydroxytyrosol potential as an anti-neuroinflammatory treatment for depression, shedding light on its antidepressant effects and its relevance in nutritional psychiatry. 

Depression is a complex psychiatric disorder with substantial societal impact. Current antidepressants offer moderate efficacy and have adverse effects. There is a big opportunity for natural molecules that target mechanisms involved in depression.  The role of neuroinflammation, a recognized but poorly understood associate of depression, has gained increasing attention.

This in vitro study on neuronal injury models, the protective effect of hydroxytyrosol on mitochondrial ultrastructure from inflammatory damage was investigated in combination with high-resolution imaging of mitochondrial substructures.

In addition to that, in animal models, depressive-like behaviors of chronic restraint stress (CRS) mice and chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) rats were examined to investigate the alleviating effects of HT.

Hydroxytyrosol protected mitochondrial ultrastructure from inflammatory damage, thus exerting neuroprotective effects in neuronal injury models. Moreover, hydroxytyrosol reduced depressive-like behaviors in mice and rats exposed to CRS and CUMS, respectively. Hydroxytyrosol´s influence in the CRS model included alleviating hippocampal neuronal damage and modulating cytokine production, mitochondrial dysfunction, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) signaling.