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Article

Portulaca oleracea Extract Modulates Diet-Dependent Neuroplasticity in a Murine Model of MCD-Induced NAFLD and Depression

by
Smaranda Ioana Mitran
1,2,†,
Mădălina Iuliana Muşat
1,3,†,
Cornelia Bejenaru
4,5,*,
George Dan Mogoşanu
4,6,*,
Ianis Kevyn Ştefan Boboc
1,7,
Robertina-Iulia Tudoraşcu
8,
Georgică Târtea
2,
Ovidiu Mircea Zlătian
9,10,
Antonia Blendea
4,5,
Andrei Biţă
4,6,
Adina-Elena Segneanu
11 and
Ludovic Everard Bejenaru
4,6
1
Experimental Research Centre for Normal and Pathological Aging, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
2
Department of Physiology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
3
Department of Scientific Research Methodology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
4
Drug Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
5
Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
6
Department of Pharmacognosy & Phytotherapy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
7
Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
8
Department of Pathophysiology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania
9
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 1 May Avenue, 200638 Craiova, Romania
10
Medical Laboratory, Emergency County Clinical Hospital, 1 Tabaci Street, 200642 Craiova, Romania
11
Institute for Advanced Environmental Research, West University of Timişoara (ICAM–WUT), 4 Oituz Street, 300086 Timişoara, Romania
 
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*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(20), 10050; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010050
Submission received: 15 September 2025 / Revised: 12 October 2025 / Accepted: 14 October 2025 / Published: 15 October 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Bioactives and Nutraceuticals)
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Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasingly recognized as a systemic condition with neuropsychiatric comorbidities, including depression. Growing evidence for the neuroprotective, antidepressant, and anxiolytic potential of Portulaca oleracea (PO) extract, provides a compelling rationale for investigating its effects in the interaction between dietary models of NAFLD and vulnerability to stress-related disorders. Fifty-four 14- to 18-week-old male and female C57BL/6N mice were distributed in two equal groups and fed either a methionine- and choline-deficient diet (MCD) or a methionine- and choline-controlled diet (MC). Subsequently, half of each group was subjected to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) and PO treatment. MCD caused significant weight loss, whereas MC promoted weight gain. Behaviorally, MCD induced anhedonia- and anxiety-like behaviors, worsened by CUMS. MC diet reduced CUMS-induced anhedonia, though anxiety-like behavior emerged only under stress. Recognition memory was impaired in stressed MCD-fed mice, while MC-fed mice showed enhanced novel object preference. At the cellular level, MCD suppressed hippocampal microglia and caused cortical astrocyte dysfunction, whereas the MC diet promoted cortical neurogenesis potentiated through PO, abolished by chronic stress. These findings underscore the impact of dietary composition on PO’s systemic effects under chronic stress and support a mechanistic link between NAFLD-related dysfunction and depression-like phenotypes.
Keywords: Portulaca oleracea; NAFLD; depression; CUMS; MCD; MC; neurogenesis; neuroprotection Portulaca oleracea; NAFLD; depression; CUMS; MCD; MC; neurogenesis; neuroprotection
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MDPI and ACS Style

Mitran, S.I.; Muşat, M.I.; Bejenaru, C.; Mogoşanu, G.D.; Boboc, I.K.Ş.; Tudoraşcu, R.-I.; Târtea, G.; Zlătian, O.M.; Blendea, A.; Biţă, A.; et al. Portulaca oleracea Extract Modulates Diet-Dependent Neuroplasticity in a Murine Model of MCD-Induced NAFLD and Depression. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26, 10050. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010050

AMA Style

Mitran SI, Muşat MI, Bejenaru C, Mogoşanu GD, Boboc IKŞ, Tudoraşcu R-I, Târtea G, Zlătian OM, Blendea A, Biţă A, et al. Portulaca oleracea Extract Modulates Diet-Dependent Neuroplasticity in a Murine Model of MCD-Induced NAFLD and Depression. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025; 26(20):10050. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010050

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mitran, Smaranda Ioana, Mădălina Iuliana Muşat, Cornelia Bejenaru, George Dan Mogoşanu, Ianis Kevyn Ştefan Boboc, Robertina-Iulia Tudoraşcu, Georgică Târtea, Ovidiu Mircea Zlătian, Antonia Blendea, Andrei Biţă, and et al. 2025. "Portulaca oleracea Extract Modulates Diet-Dependent Neuroplasticity in a Murine Model of MCD-Induced NAFLD and Depression" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 26, no. 20: 10050. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010050

APA Style

Mitran, S. I., Muşat, M. I., Bejenaru, C., Mogoşanu, G. D., Boboc, I. K. Ş., Tudoraşcu, R.-I., Târtea, G., Zlătian, O. M., Blendea, A., Biţă, A., Segneanu, A.-E., & Bejenaru, L. E. (2025). Portulaca oleracea Extract Modulates Diet-Dependent Neuroplasticity in a Murine Model of MCD-Induced NAFLD and Depression. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(20), 10050. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262010050

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