Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is the common complication of diabetes mellitus. Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor trichostatin A (TSA) is reported to ameliorate the peripheral nerves degeneration of DPN. However, the exact mechanism is still not well elucidated. Here, we first revealed that TSA promoted nerve conduction and brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression in the sciatic nerves of diabetic mice. In line, TSA also reversed high glucose-reduced mature BDNF expression in vitro cultured rat Schwann cells (RSC96). Then unexpectedly, the downstream targets of TSA HDAC1 and HDAC5 were not involved in TSA-improved BDNF expression. Furthermore, unfolded protein response (UPR) chaperone GRP78 was revealed to be downregulated with high glucose stimulation in RSC96 cells, which was avoided with TSA treatment. Also, GRP78 upregulation mediated TSA-improved mature BDNF expression in high glucose-cultured RSC96 cells by binding with BDNF. As well, TSA treatment enhanced the binding of GRP78 with BDNF in RSC96 cells. Again, UPR-associated transcription factors XBP-1s and ATF6 were involved in TSA-increased GRP78 expression in high glucose-stimulated RSC96 cells. Finally, conditioned medium from high glucose-cultured RSC96 cells delayed neuron SH-SY5Y differentiation and that from TSA-treated high glucose-cultured RSC96 cells promoted SH-SY5Y cell differentiation. Taken together, our findings suggested that TSA increased BDNF expression to ameliorate DPN by improving XBP-1s/ATF6/GRP78 axis in Schwann cells. Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.