Evaluation of Antidepressant Effect of Minocycline in Alcohol Abstinence-Induced Depression Model in Mice

IntroductionDepression is one of the common comorbidities seen in chronic alcohol use disorder. Also, alcohol withdrawal induces depression and anxiety, which is associated with relapse in alcohol consumption. Minocycline, a tetracycline derivative, has shown an antidepressant effect in preclinical models. However, their effect on alcohol withdrawal-induced depression has not been studied. Therefore, the current study has been undertaken to evaluate the effect of minocycline on alcohol abstinence-induced depression models in mice.MethodWe conducted the study in two models. C57bl/6 mice were given a two-bottle choice (alcohol + water) for 28 days. During alcohol abstinence of 14 days, mice were treated with 10 mg/kg, 30 mg/kg, and 50 mg/kg of minocycline and were evaluated for behavioral changes using the forced swim test (FST) and tail suspension test (TST). A sucrose preference test was carried out where mice were exposed to binge alcohol drinking protocol for 12 days, where a two-bottle choice (alcohol or water) was given. This was followed by exposing the mice to a two-bottle choice paradigm (alcohol + sucrose) and they were divided into groups - no treatment group, vehicle-treated, minocycline 30 mg/kg or minocycline 50 mg/kg treated - and consumption of sucrose was assessed.ResultIn the forced swim test, a significant decrease in immobility time (p