Behavioral and histopathological examination of antidepressant‐like effect of Vitamin D in rats

Exposure to repetitive stressful life situations is clearly associated with the onset of depression. Convergent evidence demonstrates that vitamin D has surprisingly diverse functions in the Nervous central system. The aim of the present study is to investigate the behavioral and the histopathological effect of Vitamin D in rats been exposed to the Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress. Twenty‐four rats were randomly divided into three groups of eight received respectively Nacl, Vit D (200 UI/kg/day) and Fluoxetine (10mg/kg/day) intraperitoneally during 6 weeks. All animals were exposed to various stressful situations, with a frequency of two stressors per day throughout the 5‐weeks. Forced swim test and histopathological evaluation were used to evaluate the antidepressant potential effect of vitamin D versus fluoxetine. The administration of Vitamin D daily reduces significantly the immobilization time during the forced swim test versus the control groupe (p=0.003). The histopathological analysis showed that supplementation by vitamin D prevent against apoptosis by a significant reduction of apoptotic neurons. Vitamin D provides a significant protective effect against neuronal loss and cellular disorganization at the hippocampus. The interpretation of our results supports our theory which suggest the antidepressant‐like effect of Vitamin D. Other investigations in the same field are being conducted to demonstrate the mechanisms of action involved in this approach