The role of CCR5 in the protective effect of Esculin on lipopolysaccharide-induced depressive symptom in mice

•We firstly evaluated the protective effect of Esculin on LPS-induced depression and LPS-induced microglia.•It was the first study to determine the role of CCR5 in the protective mechanism of Esculin in inflammation and perform the molecular docking.•It was the first study to propose the mechanism of Esculin on LPS-induced depression and LPS-induced microglia via CCR5-mediated TLR4/NF-κB and CREB/BDNF pathway.