This study showed that compared with the depression group, both Bax protein and mRNA expression increased significantly in myocardial cells in depression with myocardial ischemia/reperfusion, suggesting that myocardial ischemia/reperfusion stimulated myocardial cell apoptosis by upregulating Bax protein expression in myocardial cells of rats with depression. This evidence concerns the gene BAX and myocardial ischemia.