电针“百会”穴对大鼠记忆保持能力的影响及海马区fos蛋白的表达

Effect of Electroacupuncture of “Baihui" Point on Memory-retention and Expression of c-fos Protein in the Hippocampus of Rats

目的 :观察电针“百会”穴对正常大鼠学习记忆能力的影响 ,这一影响和fos蛋白在海马区的表达有无相关性。方法 :利用智能Morris水迷宫检测大鼠的学习记忆能力 ,利用免疫组化方法 ,结合病理图像分析仪检测fos蛋白的表达情况。结果 :连续电针“百会”穴 3天后 ,实验组大鼠在智能Morris水迷宫内找到平台的时间和游泳的路程与对照组相比均缩短 (P <0 0 5) ,海马区fos蛋白大量表达 ,与对照组比较 ,差异显著 (P <0 0 1)。结论 :针刺“百会”可以提高大鼠记忆保持能力 。

Objective:To investigate the influence of electroacupuncture(EA) on memory retention and the correlation between the effect of EA and the expression of fos protein in the rat hippocampus. Methods: 30 Wistar male rats were randomly divided into control group (n=10) and EA group (n=20). Intelligent Morris water maze place test was used to check the memory behavior reactions of two groups. EA (150 Hz, 2.0 mA, continuous waves) was applied to “Baihui'(GV 20) for 20 min, once daily, continuously for 3 days. The expression of c fos protein of sections of the hypothalamus tissue was assayed by immunohistochemical method. Results: Compared with control group, both the swimming distance and time that the rats found the flat of the water maze in EA group were significantly shorter (P<0 05), suggesting that EA can significantly improve the rats' memory. In addition, the c fos immunoreaction positive cells of the hypothalamic region (particularly the dentate gyrus) of EA group were considerably more than those of control group (P<0 01), suggesting that EA can upregulate expression of c fos protein in the hippocampus. Conclusion: EA can enhance the rats' memory, which may be related to the upregulation of c fos gene expression.