Protective effect of honey on learning and memory impairment, depression and neurodegeneration induced by chronic unpredictable mild stress

Abstract

Introduction: Chronic stress, which has been prevalent in human life, induce structural changes in the hippocampus. Depression and impairment of memory are serious comorbidities of chronic stress. In this study, we evaluated the impact of an Iranian honey pretreatment on memory deficit, depression and the hippocampal neuronal loss in the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model. Methods: Adult male Wistar rats were divided into the control groups that received water or honey (0.2 or 2g/kg) and CUMS groups that subjected different, randomly and unpredictable mild stressors for 4 weeks. Ten days before starting the CUMS procedures, the animals received honey (0.2 or 2g/kg, daily, orally), which was continued until sacrificing. Morris water maze and sucrose performance tests were used to evaluate the spatial learning and memory and depressive-like behavior in the animals respectively. Hippocampus and whole brain samples were collected for further biochemical and histological analysis. Results: Honey reversed the depression-like behavior and ameliorated the spatial memory deficit induced by CUMS. Also, honey decreased cell death in the hippocampus and reduced the malondialdehyde level in treated animals. Conclusion: These results revealed that honey diminished learning and memory deficits and depression in chronic stress conditions.

Chemical Characterization and Biological Properties of Leguminous Honey

“…Ninety-seven volatile compounds were identified and semi-quantified via HS SPME GC-MS analysis in the five monofloral Italian legume honey belonging to distinct chemical classes: terpenoids and norisoprenoids (26 compounds), alcohols (14), aldehydes (12), acids (11), esters (9), phenols (6), ketones (5), furans (5), pyranones (3), benzene derivates (2), lactones (2), and sulfur compounds (2). The recognized 97 volatile metabolites, the abbreviation code, the experimental and literature Kovats index, and the identification methods are listed in Table S1.…”

“…In recent years, some studies have evaluated the beneficial effects attributable to honey and other bee products in combating some of the most critical neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), which are a consequence of neuronal death occurring in different parts of the brain and the central nervous system, mainly manifesting in older people [10,11].…”

The potential neuroprotective effects of stingless bee honey

“…The hippocampus and frontal cortex are the most vulnerable brain regions to damage caused by ROS overproduction ( Wang and Michaelis, 2010 ; Jiang et al, 2017 ; Roganovic et al, 2019 ). Moreover, the hippocampus is the most susceptible to neurodegeneration, which is also essential in learning, memory, spatial navigation, and emotional behavior ( Rafiee Sardooi et al, 2021 ).…”