Cross electro-nape-acupuncture ameliorates cerebral hemorrhageinduced brain damage by inhibiting necroptosis

BACKGROUND Receptor interacting protein kinase 1(RIPK1)-mediated cell death,including apoptosis and necroptosis,belongs to programmed cell death.It has been reported that RIPK1-mediated necroptosis exists in lesions of cerebral hemorrhage(CH).Electroacupuncture,a treatment derived from traditional Chinese medicine,could improve neurological impairment in patients with brain injury.AIM To investigate the protective role of cross electro-nape acupuncture(CENA)in CH,and clarify the potential mechanism.METHODS CH rat models were established,and CENA was applied to the experimental rats.Neurological functions and encephaledema were then measured.Necrotic cells in the brain of rats with CH were evaluated by propidium iodide staining.Necroptosis was assessed by immunofluorescence.Activation of the necroptosisrelated pathway was detected by western blot.Extraction of brain tissue,cerebrospinal fluid and serum samples was conducted to measure the expression and secretion of inflammatory cytokines by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.RESULTS The necroptotic marker p-MLKL was detectable in the brains of rats with CH.Next,we found that CENA could ameliorate neurological functions in rat models of CH.Moreover,the upregulation of RIPK1-mediated necroptosis-related molecules in the brains of rats with CH were inhibited by CENA.Further investigation revealed that CENA partially blocked the interaction between RIPK1 and RIPK3.Finally,in vivo assays showed that CENA decreased the expression of the inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor-α,interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 in CH rat models.CONCLUSION These findings revealed that CENA exerts a protective role in CH models by inhibiting RIPK1-mediated necroptosis.

Professor Wei-bin GAO's experience in treatment of voiding dysfunction with electroacupuncture

As a common clinical syndrome,voiding dysfunction is complicated in etiology,involved in a variety of diseases and associated with multi-disciplines of medicine.Either medication or surgery has not obtained the favorable effect on it.Integrated the theories of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine and based on the pathogenesis of the disease,the acupoint specificity and neuromodulatory effects,Professor Wei-bin GAO suggested"selecting the acupoints along the affected areas"The acupoints located near to the lumbar,sacral and abdominal regions are dominated and stimulated with electroacupuncture at different electric waves.In treatment,electric stimulation with disperse and dense waves was adopted.The bone conduction theory of dense-wave electric field was proposed.The same neuromodulation is presented in different diseases such as neurogenic bladder,pediatric enuresis,senile nocturia,benign prostatic hyerplasia,and postpartum of postoperative urination disorders.Hence,the same therapeutic method is adoptable to different diseases with the basic acupoint composition modified.

针刺调控慢性疲劳综合征中枢机制研究进展

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by extreme fatigue that lasts for a long time and doesn't alleviate with rest.The number of the cases has been increasing during the era of COVID-19 pandemic.Acupuncture may have some effect on chronic fatigue syndrome,but its mechanism remains unclear.This article was to summarize the specific manifestations of abnormal central mechanism in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome through laboratory tests and neuroimaging.It was found from the laboratory evaluation that there were changes in the structure of the frontal cortex,thalamus and other brain tissues;factors,including IFN-a and IL-10 in cerebrospinal fluid were found abnormal;results of oxidative and nitrosative stress and changes in neurobiochemical substances,e.g.hypothalamus hormone levels and neurotransmitter concentrations,were observed.With magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography,it was shown that the partial brain of persons with chronic fatigue syndrome had morphological changes with diminished grey matter and white;changes in cerebral blood flow velocity caused by decreased perfusion and functional activity with abnormal connectivity in brain were detected.In addition,there was significant decrease in glucose metabolism accompanied with neuroinflammatory response;metabolic disorders of serotonergic,cholinergic,glutamatergic and yaminobutyric acid energy neurotransmitters were also discovered.The regulatory effect of acupuncture on the above central neurological abnormalities in chronic fatigue syndrome model animals was elaborated,and the direction for further research was analyzed in order to provide ideas for further research on the central mechanism of acupuncture treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome.

火针围刺联合夹脊电针治疗急性期带状疱疹:随机对照试验

ObjectivesTo investigate the clinical efficacy of surrounding fire needling combined with electroacupuncture (EA) at Jiājĭ (夹脊EX-B2) on acute herpes zoster, and explore the potential mechanism of this combined treatment by measuring the changes of serum inflammatory cytokines and pain mediators.MethodsSixty patients with acute herpes zoster were randomly assigned to either acupuncture plus western medicine group or western medicine group. In the western medicine group, the patients took orally mecobalamin and ganciclovir for 14 consecutive days. In the acupuncture plus western medicine group, on the base of the western medicine, the surrounding fire needling (fire needling was operated swiftly toward the center of skin lesions.) combined with EA at EX-B2 was provided. Acupoints of EX-B2 were selected based on the nerve ganglion corresponding to the skin lesions, as well as two adjacent nerve ganglions(one level upwards and one downwards) to the lesions, and were stimulated with EA once daily for 14 days. The change of symptoms from the blister eruption to scabbing and decrustation were observed. The score of visual analogue scale (VAS), serum inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α) and pain mediators (calcitonin gene related peptide, substance P) before and after treatment, the scores of Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) and Hamilton depression scale (HAMD) before and after treatment as well as at 1 month of follow-up, and the overall effective rate and the incidence of post-hepatic neuralgia at 1 month of follow-up were assessed and compared between two groups, respectively.ResultsAfter treatment completion, the time of blister relief, scabbing and decrustation in the acupuncture plus western medicine group was significantly shorter when compared with that of the western medicine group (all P < 0.05). After treatment, VAS score, PSQI score and HAMD score were all reduced significantly when compared with that before treatment within group (P < 0.05). These scores in the acupuncture plus western medicine were reduced significantly compared with the western medicine group at the same time point (all P < 0.05). After treatment, the incidence of post-hepatic neuralgia was 6.89%, lower than that in western medicine group (50.00%, P < 0.05). After treatment, the values of serum inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, TNT-a) and pain mediators (CGRP, SP) were reduced when compared with the those before treatment within group (P < 0.05), and the reduction in the acupuncture plus western medicine group was larger than that in the western medicine group (P < 0.05). The total effective rate was 96.67% in the acupuncture plus western medicine group, higher than western medicine group (86.67%, P < 0.05).ConclusionsSurrounding fire needling therapy combined with EA at EX-B2 on the base of western medicine obtained better therapeutic effect on acute herpes zoster when compared with western medicine. This combined treatment may effectively relieve pain and depressive emotions, improve sleep quality and reduce the incidence of post-hepatic neuralgia. The underlying mechanism may related to regulation of pain mediators and reduction of inflammatory cytokines.