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Molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of acupuncture on neuropathic pain
Acupuncture has been used to treat neuropathic pain for a long time, but its mechanisms of action remain unknown. In this study, we observed the effects of electroacupuncture and manual acu- puncture on neuropathic pain and on ephrin-B/EphB signaling in rats models of chronic constriction injury-ind...
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Published in: | Neural regeneration research 2013-09, Vol.8 (25), p.2350-2359 |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Subjects: | |
Citations: | Items that cite this one |
Online Access: | Get full text |
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Summary: | Acupuncture has been used to treat neuropathic pain for a long time, but its mechanisms of action remain unknown. In this study, we observed the effects of electroacupuncture and manual acu- puncture on neuropathic pain and on ephrin-B/EphB signaling in rats models of chronic constriction injury-induced neuropathic pain. The results showed that manual acupuncture and electroacu- puncture significantly reduced mechanical hypersensitivity following chronic constriction injury, es- pecially electroacupuncture treatment. Real-time PCR results revealed that ephrin-B1/B3 and EphB1/B2 mRNA expression levels were significantly increased in the spinal dorsal horns of chronic constriction injury rats. Electroacupuncture and manual acupuncture suppressed the high expres- sion of ephrin-B1 mRNA, and elevated EphB3/B4 mRNA expression. Electroacupuncture signifi- cantly enhanced the mRNA expression of ephrin-B3 and EphB3/B6 in the dorsal horns of neuro- pathic pain rats. Western blot results revealed that electroacupuncture in particular, and manual acupuncture, significantly up-regulated ephrin-B3 protein levels in rat spinal dorsal horns. The re- sults of this study suggest that acupuncture could activate ephrin-B/EphB signaling in neuropathic pain rats and improve neurological function. |
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ISSN: | 1673-5374 1876-7958 |
DOI: | 10.3969/j.issn.1673-5374.2013.25.006 |