Chaihu-Shugan-San administration ameliorates perimenopausal anxiety and depression in rats

Chaihu-Shugan-San (CSS) is a traditional Chinese herbal formula that is widely used for treating perimenopausal symptoms in China; however, its mechanisms remain unknown. The present study was designed to investigate potential CSS mechanisms in rats with unpredicted chronic mild stress (UCMS) and normally aging rats (52 weeks of age). We performed the sucrose consumption test along with the forced swimming test to confirm depression-like behavior and the open field test (OFT) to confirm anxiety-like behavior in the animals. In addition, we used an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to measure serum and hippocampal estradiol (E2) levels and a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction to assess hippocampal mRNA levels of estrogen receptors (ERs) α and β as well as G protein-coupled receptor 30 (GPR30). We found that CSS administration resulted in a significant increase in the ratio of hippocampal ERα and ERβ mRNA (ERα/ERβ ratio) in UCMS rats (p