Effect of moxibustion on expressions of TGF-β and Smad4 in colonic mucosa of rats with intestinal fibrosis in Crohn disease

• Published in: Journal of acupuncture and tuina science 2012-12, Vol.10 (6), p.331-335
• Main Authors: Wu, Huan-gan, Zhao, Chen, Wu, Lu-yi, Yu, Shu-guang, Zhao, Bai-xiao, Chang, Xiao-rong, Dou, Chuan-zi, Ma, Xiao-peng, Liu, Hui-rong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acupuncture; Crohn's disease; Growth factors; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Polymerase chain reaction; Proteins; Special Topic Study
• ISSN: 1672-3597; 1993-0399
• DOI: 10.1007/s11726-012-0631-8

Objective To observe the effect of moxibustion on the expressions of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) protein, and Smad4 protein and mRNA in rats with intestinal fibrosis in Crohn disease (CD), and to discuss the action mechanism of acupuncture-moxibustion in treating intestinal fibrosis in CD from the perspective of TGF-β/Smads signal pathway. Methods A CD intestinal fibrosis model was developed by using male SD rats of clean grade. The rats were randomized into a normal group, a model group, a mild moxibustion group, an electroacupuncture (EA) group, and a herb-partitioned moxibustion group. The rats in the normal and the model groups did not receive any interventions. Tianshu (ST 25) and Qihai (CV 6) were selected for the rats in the mild moxibustion group, the EA group, and the herb-partitioned moxibustion group. Mild moxibustion, EA, and herb-partitioned moxibustion were given respectively. After treatment, the expressions of TGF-β and Smad4 proteins in rat’s colon were detected by using immunohistochemistry (IHC); the expression of Smad4 mRNA was determined by using fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR). Results Compared with the normal group, the expressions of TGF-β protein, Smad4 protein and Smad4 mRNA significantly increased in the model group ( P