Experiments

Items

Material	Material Usage	Supplier
Sprague–Dawley rats	Subjects for CUMS model	Experimental Animal Center of Chongqing Medical University
Standard laboratory conditions	Housing for rats	N/A
Various stressors	Inducing chronic mild stress	N/A
1% sucrose solution	Used in the Sucrose Preference Test	N/A
10% sucrose solution	Used in the Splash Test	N/A
Vertical plastic cylinder	Used in Forced Swimming Test	N/A
Morris water maze	Used in Memory/Cognitive functions test	N/A

Instructions

1
House the rats in standard laboratory conditions with a 12 h light/dark cycle, temperature 22 ± 2°C, humidity 50% ± 10% with free access to food and water.
2
Acclimate rats for two weeks upon arrival.
3
Randomly divide 80 acclimated rats into two groups: CUMS (n=40) and control (n=40).
4
Expose CUMS group to various stressors daily for 6 weeks.
5
Perform behavioral tests during and after the 6-week CUMS procedure.
6
Measure body weight and sucrose preference every week.
7
Conduct behavioral tests 2 days after termination of CUMS: sucrose preference test, coat state, splash test, open-field test, elevated plus-maze test, forced swimming test, and Morris water maze test.
8
Use statistical tools to analyze the data and assess the validity of the CUMS-induced depression model.

Methodologies

Sprague–Dawley rats initially housed in standard laboratory conditions and acclimatized for two weeks. Rats divided into CUMS and control groups.
CUMS group subjected to various randomly scheduled, low-intensity social and environmental stressors for 6 weeks.
Behavioral tests: sucrose preference test, coat state, splash test, open-field test, elevated plus-maze test, forced swimming test, and Morris water maze test conducted during and following the CUMS procedure.
Stepwise discriminant analysis and Pearson correlation coefficient used to analyze interrelationships among behavioral endpoints.

Re-evaluation of the interrelationships among the behavioral tests in rats exposed to CUMS