Depression and vulnerability to chronic stress are associated with inflammatory responses and the loss of blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity. Dietary fiber and its short-chain fatty acid (SCFAs) metabolites have been reported to affect neuropsychiatric disorders. Here, a 9-week treatment course of inulin (0.037 g of inulin/kcal) exhibited in chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) mice led to antidepressant and anxiolytic effects, as well as improved neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity by enhancing CREB/BDNF signaling. Importantly, inulin inhibited CUMS-induced decreased BBB permeability, reduced lipopolysaccharide (LPS) brain penetration, and modulated TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling to alleviate neuroinflammatory responses. Furthermore, inulin protected the gut barrier integrity and led to the increased formation of SCFAs. Enhanced SCFAs formation was strongly positively correlated with behavioral improvements, BBB integrity, and neuroinflammatory responses. We speculate that dietary fiber may be a promising nutritional intervention to reverse the effects of chronic stress by regulating metabolites and protecting the BBB integrity.
Keywords: BBB integrity; Behavioral impairment; Gut−brain axis; Neuroinflammation; SCFAs; TLR4/MyD88/NFκB pathway.