Acupoint-specific fMRI patterns in human brain

Specific central nervous system (CNS) responses to acupuncture have recently attracted attention. It is important to understand the differences in fMRI images of the brain evoked by acupuncture at an acupoint and at a nearby “sham” point. Here, we report analyses of fMRI images of the brains of 37 h...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuroscience letters 2005-08, Vol.383 (3), p.236-240
Main Authors: Yan, Bin, Li, Ke, Xu, Jianyang, Wang, Wei, Li, Kuncheng, Liu, Hua, Shan, Baoci, Tang, Xiaowei
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acupoint specificity
Acupuncture
Acupuncture - methods
Acupuncture Points
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - anatomy & histology
Brain - physiology
Brain imaging
Brain Mapping
Female
fMRI
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Medical sciences
Miscellaneous
Oxygen - blood
Radiotherapy. Instrumental treatment. Physiotherapy. Reeducation. Rehabilitation, orthophony, crenotherapy. Diet therapy and various other treatments (general aspects)
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
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Summary:Specific central nervous system (CNS) responses to acupuncture have recently attracted attention. It is important to understand the differences in fMRI images of the brain evoked by acupuncture at an acupoint and at a nearby “sham” point. Here, we report analyses of fMRI images of the brains of 37 healthy volunteers in response to acupuncture at Liv3 (Taichong) and LI4 (Hegu) versus their sham points. We found common activation areas in response to Liv3 or LI4 acupuncture in the middle temporal gyrus and cerebellum, along with deactivation areas in the middle frontal gyrus and inferior parietal lobule, compared with the effects of acupuncture at sham points. Acupuncture at Liv3 evoked specific activation at the postcentral gyrus, posterior cingulate, parahippocampal gyrus, BA 7, 19 and 41, but deactivation at the inferior frontal gyrus, anterior cingulate, BA 17 and 18, compared with acupuncture at its sham point. Acupuncture at LI4 evoked specific activation at the temporal pole, but deactivation at the precentral gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, pulvinar and BA 8, 9 and 45, compared with acupuncture at its sham point. These observations reveal that acupuncture at acupoints induces specific patterns of brain activity, and these patterns may relate to the therapeutic effects of acupuncture.
ISSN:0304-3940
1872-7972
DOI:10.1016/j.neulet.2005.04.021