Mechanism of intervention of medicine combined with mild moxibustion on hypothyroidism rat model

Objective:To explore the intervention effect of medicine combined with mild moxibustion on immune factor and Na/I symporter(NIS)in hypothyroidism rat model.Methods:The model was successfully made by intragastric administration of propylthiouracil(PTU)solution medicine and medicine combined with mild moxibustion groups were given levothyroxine sodium suspension 60μg/kg body weight by gavage,once a day.In the medicine combined with mild moxibustion group,mild moxibustion was applied in“Dazhui”,“Mingmen”,“Pishu”,“Shenshu”,and 10 minutes per point,once a day,and one day off every six days;four weeks in a row.The model group and medicine was fixed in the same way as the medicine combined with mild moxibustion group.The blank group received no treatment.The contents of thyrotropin-releasing hormone(TSH),tatalthyroxine(TT4),thyroid peroxidase antibody(TPOAb),thyroglobulin antibodies(TGAb),Interleukin-4(IL-4)and Interleukin-23(IL-23)in serum were determined by Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay(ELISA).The content of NIS and the expression level of NISmRNA in thyroid tissues of each group were detected by immunohistochemistry and real-time polymerase chain reaction(R-T PCR).Results:Compared with the blank group,the contents of TSH,TPOAb,TGAb and IL-23 in the serum of rats in the model group were increased,the contents of IL-4 and TT4 were decreased,and the contents of NIS and NISmRNA in thyroid tissue were decreased,with statistical significance(P<0.01).Compared with model group,the contents of TSH,TPOAb,TGAb and IL-23 in serum of medicine group and medicine combined with mild moxibustion group were decreased,while the contents of IL-4 and TT4 were increased;the NIS content and NISmRNA expression in thyroid tissues were increased,and the differences were statistically significant(P<0.01).Compared with the medicine group,NISmRNA expression in thyroid tissues of medicine combined with mild moxibustion groups was increased,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).Conclusion:Medicine combined with mild moxibustion can decrease the contents of TPOAb,TGAb and IL-23,and increase the content of IL-4,increasing the content and expression of NIS to interfere with the hypothyroidism rat model.

Moxibustion upregulates hippocampal progranulin expression

In China,moxibustion is reported to be useful and has few side effects for chronic fatigue syndrome,but its mechanisms are largely unknown.More recently,the focus has been on the wealth of information supporting stress as a factor in chronic fatigue syndrome,and largely concerns dysregulation in the stress-related hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.In the present study,we aimed to determine the effect of moxibustion on behavioral symptoms in chronic fatigue syndrome rats and examine possible mechanisms.Rats were subjected to a combination of chronic restraint stress and forced swimming to induce chronic fatigue syndrome.The acupoints Guanyuan（CV4） and Zusanli（ST36,bilateral） were simultaneously administered moxibustion.Untreated chronic fatigue syndrome rats and normal rats were used as controls.Results from the forced swimming test,open field test,tail suspension test,real-time PCR,enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay,and western blot assay showed that moxibustion treatment decreased m RNA expression of corticotropin-releasing hormone in the hypothalamus,and adrenocorticotropic hormone and corticosterone levels in plasma,and markedly increased progranulin m RNA and protein expression in the hippocampus.These findings suggest that moxibustion may relieve the behavioral symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome,at least in part,by modulating the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and upregulating hippocampal progranulin.

Governor Vessel Moxibustion:Ancient Chinese Medical Technology with New Vitality

Moxibustion is an ancient therapeutic technique used in Chinese medicine. Governor Vessel moxibustion（GVM） was developed from long snake moxibustion, a popular technique used in China＇s Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, and is significantly more effective than general moxibustion. We aimed to review GVM, including its theoretical basis, choices of moxibustion points and materials, operation procedures, clinical applications, and contraindications. This information could increase the appropriate use of GVM and support further in-depth research.

Clinical study on depression differentiated as yang deficiency treated with the combined therapy of ginger-isolated moxibustion and western medicine

Objective To compare the differences in the clinical efficacy on depression differentiated as yang deficiency between the combined therapy of ginger isolated moxibustion and escitalopram and the simple application escitalopram.Methods Eighty patients of depression differentiated as yang deficiency were randomized into an observa-