Prospect of value and application of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation to control blood pressure in proactive healthcare perspective. / 主动健康视域下经皮穴位电刺激调控血压的价值与应用展望.

Hypertension is a global problem threatening human health and life. Although there are many antihypertensive drugs, the low compliance of medication affects its efficacy, and the effect in regulating hypertension has become increasingly prominent. Focusing on the new trend of proactive healthcare management, in the present paper, we made a summary about the status and existing problems of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) in the regulation of blood pressure, and put forward some suggestions, such as selecting acupoints based on classical acupuncture theory to highlight the advantages of TEAS to control blood pressure as a whole, optimizing and screening the parameters of TEAS in the regulation of blood pressure, expanding the research observation indexes etc. We also made a prospect about its future application, hoping to provide new ideas for the proactive regulation, whole-process regulation and integrated regulation of blood pressure.

Butyrate Prevents the Pathogenic Anemia-Inflammation Circuit by Facilitating Macrophage Iron Export.

Most patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) develop anemia, which is attributed to the dysregulation of iron metabolism. Reciprocally, impaired iron homeostasis also aggravates inflammation. How this iron-mediated, pathogenic anemia-inflammation crosstalk is regulated in the gut remains elusive. Herein, it is for the first time revealed that anemic IBD patients exhibit impaired production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), particularly butyrate. Butyrate supplementation restores iron metabolism in multiple anemia models. Mechanistically, butyrate upregulates ferroportin (FPN) expression in macrophages by reducing the enrichment of histone deacetylase (HDAC) at the Slc40a1 promoter, thereby facilitating iron export. By preventing iron sequestration, butyrate not only mitigates colitis-induced anemia but also reduces TNF-α production in macrophages. Consistently, macrophage-conditional FPN knockout mice exhibit more severe anemia and inflammation. Finally, it is revealed that macrophage iron overload impairs the therapeutic effectiveness of anti-TNF-α antibodies in colitis, which can be reversed by butyrate supplementation. Hence, this study uncovers the pivotal role of butyrate in preventing the pathogenic circuit between anemia and inflammation.

Electrophysiological mechanisms of motion-style scalp acupuncture for treating poststroke spasticity in rats. / è¿åŠ¨å¤´é’ˆæ³•æŠ—å’ä¸­åŽç—‰æŒ›æ•ˆåº”çš„ç”µç”Ÿç†æœºåˆ¶ç ”ç©¶.

OBJECTIVES: To observe the effect of motion-style scalp acupuncture (MSSA) on H-reflex in rats with post-stroke spasticity (PSS), so as to explore the electrophysiological mechanisms of MSSA against spasticity. METHODS: A total of 36 male SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation, model and MSSA groups, with 12 rats in each group. The stroke model was established by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery. After modeling, rats in the MSSA group were treated by scalp acupuncture (manipulated every 15 min, 200 r/min) at ipsilesional "parietal and temporal anterior oblique line" (MS6) for a total of 30 min, the treadmill training (10 m/min) was applied during the needling retention, once daily for consecutive 7 days. The neurological deficits, muscle tone and motor function were assessed by Zea Longa score, modified modified Ashworth scale (MMAS) score and screen test score before and after treatment, respectively. The H-reflex of spastic muscle was recorded by electrophysiological recordings and the frequency dependent depression (FDD) of H-reflex was also recorded. The cerebral infarction volume was evaluated by TTC staining. RESULTS: Compared with the sham operation group, the Zea longa score, MMAS score, cerebral infarction volume, motion threshold, Hmax/Mmax ratio and FDD of H-reflex were significantly increased (P<0.01), while the screen test score was significantly decreased (P<0.01) in the model group. Intriguingly, compared with the model group, the above results were all reversed (P<0.01) in the MSSA group. CONCLUSIONS: MSSA could exert satisfactory anti-spastic effects in rats with PSS, the underlying mechanism may be related to the improvement of nerve function injury, the reduction of spastic muscle movement threshold, Hmax/Mmax ratio and H-reflex FDD.

Glycerol monolaurate improved intestinal barrier, antioxidant capacity, inflammatory response and microbiota dysbiosis in large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) fed with high soybean oil diets.

Glycerol monolaurate (GML) is a potential candidate for regulating metabolic syndrome and inflammatory response. However, the role of GML in modulating intestinal health in fish has not been well determined. In this study, a 70-d feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of GML on intestinal barrier, antioxidant capacity, inflammatory response and microbiota community of large yellow croaker (13.05 ± 0.09 g) fed with high level soybean oil (SO) diets. Two basic diets with fish oil (FO) or SO were formulated. Based on the SO group diet, three different levels of GML 0.02% (SO0.02), 0.04% (SO0.04) and 0.08% (SO0.08) were supplemented respectively. Results showed that intestinal villus height and perimeter ratio were increased in SO0.04 treatment compared with the SO group. The mRNA expressions of intestinal physical barrier-related gene odc and claudin-11 were significantly up-regulated in different addition of GML treatments compared with the SO group. Fish fed SO diet with 0.04% GML addition showed higher activities of acid phosphatase and lysozyme compared with the SO group. The content of malonaldehyde was significantly decreased and activities of catalase and superoxide dismutase were significantly increased in 0.02% and 0.04% GML groups compared with those in the SO group. The mRNA transcriptional levels of inflammatory response-related genes (il-1ß, il-6, tnf-α and cox-2) in 0.04% GML treatment were notably lower than those in the SO group. Meanwhile, sequencing analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA V4-V5 region showed that GML addition changed gut microbiota structure and increased alpha diversity of large yellow croaker fed diets with a high level of SO. The correlation analysis results indicated that the change of intestinal microbiota relative abundance strongly correlated with intestinal health indexes. In conclusion, these results demonstrated that 0.02%-0.04% GML addition could improve intestinal morphology, physical barrier, antioxidant capacity, inflammatory response and microbiota dysbiosis of large yellow croaker fed diets with a high percentage of SO.

Biofeedback physical regulation of hypertension based on acupoints: A clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a predominant risk factor for cardiovascular disease and has imposed a global disease burden. Poor medication compliance is the major obstacle to antihypertensive drug therapy, and negative mood status is also detrimental to blood pressure (BP) management. While transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS), as an electrical stimulation modality for biofeedback physical regulation based on acupoints, offers a such nondrug alternative option that is noninvasive, safe, and effective with high adherence. However, the optimal stimulation parameters of TEAS for hypertension remain unclear, especially the frequency, which needs further exploration. OBJECTIVE: The study aims to investigate the efficacy of TEAS for hypertension, and to screen the optimal electrical stimulation frequency. METHODS: This is an 8-week, randomized, controlled pilot trial with 3 parallel groups. In a ratio of 1:1:1, 120 patients with stage 1 hypertension will be divided into the TEAS-2Hz group, TEAS-10Hz group, or usual care group. All patients will receive the usual care for hypertension including lifestyle education, etc. Additionally, the 2 TEAS groups will receive 12 sessions of TEAS interventions at 2 Hz or 10 Hz, 3 times weekly for 30 minutes each, with 4 weeks of follow-up. The main outcome will be the change from baseline to week 4 in systolic BP among the groups. Secondary outcomes consist of changes in diastolic BP, mean arterial pressure, heart rate, heart rate variability, medication adherence, and quality of life. The safety outcomes will be any adverse event during the treatment. DISCUSSION: As a pre-study for the next large clinical trial of TEAS for hypertension, this study will offer references for optimized frequency of biofeedback electrical devices and promote more consciousness of the benefits of body-mind holistic regulation of BP, thereby achieving proactive and overall process management of BP.

Effects of supplemental octanoate on hepatic lipid metabolism, serum biochemical indexes, antioxidant capacity and inflammation-related genes expression of large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) fed with high soybean oil diet.

Dietary high soybean oil (SO) levels might cause hepatic lipid deposition, induce oxidative stress and inflammatory response in aquatic animals, while octanoate (OCT) is beneficial to metabolism and health in mammals. However, the effect of OCT has been studied rarely in aquatic animals. In this study, a 10-week feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effect of supplemental OCT on hepatic lipid metabolism, serum biochemical indexes, antioxidant capacity and inflammatory response of large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) fed with high SO levels diet. The negative control diet contained 7% fish oil (FO), while the positive control diet contained 7% SO. The other four experimental diets were supplemented with 0.7, 2.1, 6.3 and 18.9 g/kg sodium octanoate (OCT) based on the positive control diet. Results showed that OCT supplementation effectively reduced the hepatic crude lipid, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and non-esterified free fatty acids contents, and alleviated lipid accumulation caused by the SO diet. Meanwhile, OCT supplementation decreased the serum TG, TC, alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, increased the serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, improved the serum lipid profiles and alleviated hepatic injury. Furthermore, with the supplementation of OCT, the mRNA expression of genes related to lipogenesis (acc1, scd1, fas, srebp1, dgat1 and cebpα) and fatty acid (FA) transport (fabp3, fatp and cd36) were down-regulated, while the mRNA expression of genes related to lipolysis (atgl, hsl and lpl) and FA ß-oxidation (cpt1 and mcad) were up-regulated. Besides that, dietary OCT increased the total antioxidant capacity, activities of peroxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase and the content of reduced glutathione, decreased the content of 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine and malondialdehyde and relieved hepatic oxidative stress. Supplementation of 0.7 and 2.1 g/kg OCT down-regulated the mRNA expression of genes related to pro-inflammatory cytokines (tnfα, il1ß and ifnγ), and suppressed hepatic inflammatory response. In conclusion, supplementation with 0.7-2.1 g/kg OCT could reduce hepatic lipid accumulation, relieve oxidative stress and regulate inflammatory response in large yellow croaker fed the diet with high SO levels, providing a new way to alleviate the hepatic fat deposition in aquatic animals.

The factors affecting neurogenesis after stroke and the role of acupuncture.

Stroke induces a state of neuroplasticity in the central nervous system, which can lead to neurogenesis phenomena such as axonal growth and synapse formation, thus affecting stroke outcomes. The brain has a limited ability to repair ischemic damage and requires a favorable microenvironment. Acupuncture is considered a feasible and effective neural regulation strategy to improve functional recovery following stroke via the benign modulation of neuroplasticity. Therefore, we summarized the current research progress on the key factors and signaling pathways affecting neurogenesis, and we also briefly reviewed the research progress of acupuncture to improve functional recovery after stroke by promoting neurogenesis. This study aims to provide new therapeutic perspectives and strategies for the recovery of motor function after stroke based on neurogenesis.

Dietary l-carnitine regulates liver lipid metabolism via simultaneously activating fatty acid ß-oxidation and suppressing endoplasmic reticulum stress in large yellow croaker fed with high-fat diets.

Dietary l-carnitine (LC) is a nutritional factor that reduces liver lipid content. However, whether dietary LC can improve lipid metabolism via simultaneous activation of mitochondrial fatty acid (FA) ß-oxidation and suppression of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is still unknown. Large yellow croaker were fed with a high-fat diet (HFD) supplemented with dietary LC at 0, 1·2 or 2·4 ‰ for 10 weeks. The results indicated that a HFD supplemented with LC reduced the liver total lipid and TAG content and improved serum lipid profiles. LC supplementation administered to this fish increased the liver antioxidant capacity by decreasing serum and liver malondialdehyde levels and enhancing the liver antioxidant capacity, which then relieved the liver damage. Dietary LC increased the ATP dynamic process and mitochondrial number, decreased mitochondrial DNA damage and enhanced the protein expression of mitochondrial ß-oxidation, biogenesis and mitophagy. Furthermore, dietary LC supplementation increased the expression of genes and proteins related to peroxisomal ß-oxidation and biogenesis. Interestingly, feeding fish with LC-enriched diets decreased the protein levels indicative of ER stress, such as glucose-regulated protein 78, p-eukaryotic translational initiation factor 2a and activating transcription factor 6. Dietary LC supplementation downregulated mRNA expression relative to FA synthesis, reduced liver lipid and relieved liver damage through regulating ß-oxidation and biogenesis of mitochondria and peroxisomes, as well as the ER stress pathway in fish fed with HFD. The present study provides the first evidence that dietary LC can improve lipid metabolism via simultaneously promoting FA ß-oxidation capability and suppressing the ER stress pathway in fish.

Lipid and metabolic alteration involvement in physiotherapy for chronic nonspecific low back pain.

BACKGROUND: Chronic nonspecific low back pain (cNLBP) is a common health problem worldwide, affecting 65-80% of the population and greatly affecting people's quality of life and productivity. It also causes huge economic losses. Manual therapy (MT) and therapeutic exercise (TE) are effective treatment options for cNLBP physiotherapy-based treatment. However, the underlying mechanisms that promote cNLBP amelioration by MT or TE are incompletely understood. METHODS: Seventeen recruited subjects were randomly divided into an MT group and a TE group. Subjects in the MT group performed muscular relaxation, myofascial release, and mobilization for 20 min during each treatment session. The treatment lasted for a total of six sessions, once every two days. Subjects in the TE group completed motor control and core stability exercises for 30 min during each treatment session. The motor control exercise included stretching of the trunk and extremity muscles through trunk and hip rotation and flexion training. Stabilization exercises consisted of the (1) bridge exercise, (2) single-leg-lift bridge exercise, (3) side bridge exercise, (4) two-point bird-dog position with an elevated contralateral leg and arm, (5) bear crawl exercise, and (6) dead bug exercise. The treatment lasted for a total of six sessions, with one session every two days. Serum samples were collected from subjects before and after physiotherapy-based treatment for lipidomic and metabolomic measurements. RESULTS: Through lipidomic analysis, we found that the phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylethanolamine (PC/PE) ratio decreased and the sphingomyelin/ceramide (SM/Cer) ratio increased in cNLBP patients after MT or TE treatment. In addition, eight metabolites enriched in pyrimidine and purine differed significantly in cNLBP patients who received MT treatment. A total of nine metabolites enriched in pyrimidine, tyrosine, and galactose pathways differed significantly in cNLBP patients after TE treatment during metabolomics analysis. CONCLUSION: Our study was the first to elucidate the alterations in the lipidomics and metabolomics of cNLBP physiotherapy-based treatment and can expand our knowledge of cNLBP physiotherapy-based treatment.

[Setting and optimization of control group in acupuncture animal experiment based on research elements].

Acupuncture animal experiment is the main form of acupuncture mechanism research, in which, the setting of control group is crucial to the scientificity and reliability of research conclusion, and the research elements are the fundamental. Focusing on the research elements involved in acupuncture animal experiment, this study summarized the current situation and characteristics of the control groups related to acupoint selection, intervention and pathological mechanism in acupuncture animal experiment, and put forward the questions and suggestions so that the references of setting control group can be provided for acupuncture animal experiment in future.

[Research progress and reflection on mechanisms of acupuncture against primary dysmenorrhea].

Research articles on the mechanisms of acupuncture in the treatment of dysmenorrhea model in rats were retrieved from PubMed and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). As revealed by the analysis, the underlying mechanisms were mainly related to the regulation of endocrine system and neurotransmitters, the modulation of immunoinflammatory responses, the improvement of uterine microcirculation, and reduction of oxidative stress. In the future, research should be carried out to explore the mechanism of acupuncture in relieving dysmenorrhea via acupoints and the specific mechanism of classical acupoints, so as to enrich the multi-pathway mechanisms of acupuncture in treating dysmenorrhea and provide more scientific basis for optimizing clinical modalities for primary dysmenorrhea treatment by acupuncture.

Octanoate Alleviates Dietary Soybean Oil-Induced Intestinal Physical Barrier Damage, Oxidative Stress, Inflammatory Response and Microbial Dysbiosis in Large Yellow Croaker (Larimichthys Crocea).

Octanoate is a type of classical medium-chain fatty acids, which is widely used to treat neurological and metabolic syndrome. However, the specific role of octanoate in repairing intestinal health impairment is currently unknown. Therefore, we investigated whether dietary octanoate repaired the intestinal damage induced by surplus soybean oil in Larimichthys crocea. In this study, dietary octanoate alleviated abnormal morphology of the intestine and enhanced expression of ZO-1 and ZO-2 to improve intestinal physical barrier. Further, dietary octanoate increased antioxidant enzymic activities and decreased the level of ROS to alleviate the intestinal oxidative stress. Dietary octanoate also attenuated the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and the polarity of macrophage to reduce the intestinal inflammatory response. Moreover, the result of intestinal microbial 16S rRNA sequence showed that dietary octanoate repaired the intestinal mucosal microbial dysbiosis, and increased the relative abundance of Lactobacillus. Dietary octanoate supplementation also increased the level of acetic acid in intestinal content and serum through increasing the abundance of acetate-producing strains. Overall, in Larimichthys crocea, dietary octanoate might alleviated oxidative stress, inflammatory response and microbial dysbiosis to repair the intestinal damage induced by surplus soybean oil. This work provides vital insights into the underlying mechanisms and treatment strategies for intestinal damage in vertebrates.

[Practical value and thought on "co-regulation of body and mind" in treatment of post-stroke spasticity with acupuncture].

This paper reviews the application of "co-regulation of body and mind" of acupuncture for post-stroke spasticity. It is found that acupoints on the head and the back of the governor vessel, as well as Jiaji (Ex-B 2) points are mainly used for regulating the mind, and the local sites of spastic muscles and the points on the antagonistic muscles are for regulating the body specially. It is believed that regulating the mind should be integrated with regulating the body, while, the acupoint selection be associated with needling methods so as to fully achieve the "co-regulation of body and mind" and enhance the practical value of acupuncture for post-stroke spasticity. It is proposed that the classical anti-spastic needling techniques, such as huici (relaxing needling) and guanci (joint needling), should be more considered.

Effects of dietary lysolecithin on growth performance, serum biochemical indexes, antioxidant capacity, lipid metabolism and inflammation-related genes expression of juvenile large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea).

A 70-day feeding trial was conducted to investigate effects of dietary lysolecithin on growth performance, serum biochemical indexes, antioxidant capacity, lipid metabolism and inflammation-related genes expression of juvenile large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) with initial weight of 6.04 ± 0.08 g. A formulated diet containing approximately 42% crude protein and 12.5% crude lipid was used as the control diet (CON). The other three experimental diets were formulated with supplementation of 0.2%, 0.4% and 0.6% lysolecithin based on the control diet, respectively. Results showed that weight gain rate (WGR) and specific growth rate (SGR) significantly increased in fish fed diets with lysolecithin compared with those in the control diet (P < 0.05). Fish fed diets with 0.4% and 0.6% lysolecithin had notably higher lipid content in muscle than that in the control diet (P < 0.05). When fish were fed diets with lysolecithin, serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) content was notably higher than that in the control diet (P < 0.05), while fish fed the diet with 0.6% lysolecithin had a significant lower serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) content than that in the control diet (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, serum aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT) activities in fish fed diets with lysolecithin were remarkably lower than those in the control diet (P < 0.05). With the increase of dietary lysolecithin from 0.2% to 0.6%, mRNA expression of stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase 1 (scd1), diacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (dgat2) and sterol-regulatory element binding protein 1 (srebp1) showed decreasing trends. Furthermore, mRNA expression of carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1 (cpt1) and lipoprotein lipase (lpl) among each dietary lysolecithin treatment were significantly higher than those in the control diet (P < 0.05). In terms of inflammation, mRNA expression of tumor necrosis factor α (tnf-α) and interleukin-1 ß (il-1ß) were significantly down-regulated in fish fed diets with lysolecithin compared with those in the control diet (P < 0.05), while the mRNA expression of interleukin-10 (il-10) was significantly higher than that in the control diet (P < 0.05). In conclusion, dietary lysolecithin could promote the growth performance, improve hepatic lipid metabolism and regulate inflammation response in juvenile large yellow croaker, and the optimal supplement level of lysolecithin was approximately 0.4% in this study.

Acupuncture improves the structure of spastic muscle and decreases spasticity by enhancing GABA, KCC2, and GABAAγ2 in the brainstem in rats after ischemic stroke.

BACKGROUND: Increasing data show that structural changes of spastic muscle and hyperexcitability of reticulospinal tract (RST) are involved in the pathogenesis of spasticity after stroke (SAS). Our previous study has indicated that the anti-spastic effect of acupuncture, especially waggle needling (WN, a multiple directional needling method with joint movement), on SAS rats was related to the KCC2-GABAA pathway in cerebral cortex. Furthermore, as a peripheral stimulation to treat upper motor neuron injury-related spasticity, acupuncture's effect on peripheral spastic muscles and inhibitory neurotransmitters in the brainstem, the origin of the RST, should be further clarified. This study aimed to examine the effect of acupuncture on the structure of spastic muscle and on the KCC2-GABAA pathway in the brainstem of SAS rats. METHODS: Middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) or a sham operation were conducted in SD rats to establish SAS and control models. Behavioral assays, muscle myosin ATPase staining, and molecular biology technologies were used to compare different groups. RESULTS: In SAS models, hindlimb motor ability was decreased, neurologic deficits and spasticity were induced, the proportion of type I muscle fibers in spastic muscle was increased, and the expressions of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), KCC2, and the GABAAγ2 subunit of the pentameric GABAA receptor in the brainstem were decreased. Acupuncture including WN and perpendicular needling (PN) reversed these effects of MCAO. Furthermore, the therapeutic effect of WN was better than that of PN. CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncture after MCAO improves the structure of spastic muscle and decreases spasticity probably at least partly by enhancing GABA, KCC2, and GABAAγ2 in the brainstem in SAS rats.

[Study on the central mechanism of acupuncture for post-stroke spasticity based on the Na+/K+-ATPase-EAATs-Glu pathway].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of acupuncture at "Yanglingquan" (GB34) and "Baihui" (GV20) on Na+/K+-ATPase, excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) and glutamate (Glu) in hippocampus of post-stroke spasticity rats, so as to explore the central mechanism in anti-spasticity. METHODS: In a total of 48 healthy SD rats, 12 rats were randomly selected to be included into sham operation group, and the remaining rats were used to make a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model using a suture method. On the 3rd day after modeling, MCAO limb spasticity rats were screened by neurological deficit symptoms and muscle tension scores, and randomly divided into the model, GB34 (Hui-puncture at GB34) and GB34+GV20 (Hui-puncture at GB34 and horizontal insertion at GV20) groups (n=12 rats in each group), and the treatment was lasted for 7 conse-cutive days. The neurological symptoms and muscle tension score were observed with the Zea Longa score and modified Ashworth scale (MAS). The levels of Glu, EAAT1 (GLAST) and EAAT2 (GLT-1) in the ischemic area of cerebral hippocampus were detected by ELISA, the expression of Na+/K+-ATPase α1 (ATP1α1) was detected by Western blot, the expression of ATP1α1 mRNA was detected by real-time PCR, and the expression of GLAST, GLT-1 and ATP1α1 was detected by immunofluorescence. RESULTS: After modeling, Zea Longa score and MAS score were increased (P<0.01), the level of Glu in the ischemic area of cerebral hippocampus was increased (P<0.01), while the expression levels of GLAST, GLT-1, ATP1α1 protein and mRNA were all decreased (P<0.01) in the model group relevant to the sham operation group. After 7 days' treatment, all the increased and decreased levels of the indexes mentioned above were reversed in the two acupuncture groups relevant to the model group (P<0.01, P<0.05), and the effects of acupuncture at GB34+GV20 were obviously superior to that of acupuncture at GB34 (P<0.05, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Acupuncture can alleviate post-stroke spasticity effectively, which may be related to its effect in up-regulating the expressions of Na+/K+-ATPase and EAATs in hippocampus. The anti-spastic effect of acupuncture at GB34+GV20 is superior to GB34 alone.

[Effect of different acupuncture and moxibustion methods on uterine contraction and microcirculation in cold congealing dysmenorrhea rats].

OBJECTIVE: To observe and compare the effects of different acupuncture and moxibustionmethods at "San-yinjiao" (SP6) on uterine contraction and microcirculation in cold congealing dysmenorrhea rats, so as to explore its mechanism underlying treatment of dysmenorrhea. METHODS: A total of 140 female SD rats were randomly divided into normal control, mo-del, perpendicular needling, transverse needling and moxibustion groups, with 28 rats in each group. The cold congealing dysme-norrhea rat model was prepared by exposure in a freezer (25 ℃) for 4 h, once daily for 5 days, and subcutaneous injection of estradiol benzoate (once daily for 10 days) and intra-abdominal injection of oxytocin (once). For rats in three intervention groups, acupuncture needles were inserted into bilateral SP6 perpendicularly or transversely to a depth of 4~5 mm and retained for 20 min, or moxibustion was applied to SP6 for 20 min. The uterine contraction degree and the uterine microcirculation were recorded. The expression levels of transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) and heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) in local tissues of SP6 area were detected by immunohistochemistry. The expression levels of µopioid receptor and endothelin 1 (ET1) mRNA in the uterus were assessed by quantitative real time-PCR. RESULTS: After modeling and compared with the normal control group, the number and peak-to-peak values of uterine contraction waves, and uterine motility were significantly increased (P<0.01,P<0.05), while the speed of blood flow in the microvessels was slowed down (P<0.01), diameters of the uterine microvessels and capillaries (cap) shrank obviously (P<0.01) in the model group. After the intervention, all indexes of uterine contraction and microcirculation were improved in three intervention groups (P<0.01, P<0.05), while transverse needling and moxibustion showed better effects compared to perpendicular needling (P<0.05, P<0.01). The expression of TRPV1 and HSP70 in SP 6 area had no significant changes (P>0.05), while the uterine µopioid receptor mRNA expression decreased (P<0.01), and ET1 mRNA expression increased (P<0.01) in the model group relevant to the normal control group. Following the intervention, the expression levels of TRPV1 and HSP70 in SP6 area were increased (P<0.05, P<0.01), and expression levels of uterine µopioid receptor mRNA increased (P<0.05, P<0.01) and uterine ET1 mRNA decreased (P<0.05, P<0.01) in the three intervention groups. The effect of moxibustion was considerably better than those of two acupuncture groups in up-regulating TRPV1 expression (P<0.05). Both transverse needling and moxibustion showed better effects of down-regulating uterine ET1 mRNA expression than perpendicular needling (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Transverse needling and moxibustion at SP6 have a better effect of relieving ute-rine contraction and improving uterine microcirculation than perpendicular needling, which may be related to their effects in up-re-gulating the expression of TRPV1 and HSP70 in SP6 area, thereby modulating the mRNA expression of µ opioid receptor and ET1 in uterine tissue.

Acupuncture alleviates spinal hyperreflexia and motor dysfunction in post-ischemic stroke rats with spastic hypertonia via KCC2-mediated spinal GABAA activation.

The majority of patients simultaneously develop motor dysfunction and spastic hypertonia after ischemic strokes, which can be associated with an increasing trend in motor impairments, seriously impeding the rehabilitation process. Evidence suggests that some deficits in the KCC2 expression in the spinal cord along with maladaptive endogenous plasticity via GABAA receptors are often involved in the pathology of spastic hypertonia after a stroke. In this respect, acupuncture has been commonly used in clinical settings for post-stroke patients' rehabilitation. Nevertheless, the mechanism of the modulating activity of this alternative medicine in the spinal pathways to relieve spasticity and improve functional recovery after a stroke has still remained unclear. Utilizing laser speckle imaging, functional assessments (viz. neurologic function scale, muscular tension scale, foot balance test, and gait analysis), H-reflex recording, TTC, Western blotting, RT-qPCR, ELISA, and immunofluorescence molecular assay, the study results illustrated that acupuncture could significantly alleviate the spinal hyperreflexia, decrease muscle tone, and enhance locomotor function by elevating the GABA, KCC2, and GABAAγ2 expressions in the lumbar spine of a rat model of post-ischemic stroke with spastic hypertonia. Furthermore, the KCC2 antagonist DIOA abolished the benefits induced by this practice. Overall, the data revealed that acupuncture is a promising therapeutic approach for spastic hypertonia after a stroke, and the positive outcomes in this sense could be achieved via activating the KCC2-mediated spinal GABAA signaling pathway.

Exploration of Diverse Secondary Metabolites From Streptomyces sp. YINM00001, Using Genome Mining and One Strain Many Compounds Approach.

A talented endophytic bacteria strain YINM00001, which showed strong antimicrobial activity and multiple antibiotic resistances, was isolated from a Chinese medicinal herb Peperomia dindygulensis Miq. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences demonstrated that strain was closely related to Streptomyces anulatus NRRL B-2000T (99.93%). The complete genome of strain YINM00001 was sequenced. The RAxML phylogenomic tree also revealed that strain YINM00001 was steadily clustered on a branch with strain Streptomyces anulatus NRRL B-2000T under the 100 bootstrap values. The complete genome of strain YINM00001 consists of an 8,372,992 bp linear chromosome (71.72 mol% GC content) and a 317,781 bp circular plasmid (69.14 mol% GC content). Genome mining and OSMAC approach were carried out to investigate the biosynthetic potential of producing secondary metabolites. Fifty-two putative biosynthetic gene clusters of secondary metabolites were found, including the putative cycloheximide, dinactin, warkmycin, and anthracimycin biosynthetic gene clusters which consist with the strong antifungal and antibacterial activities exhibited by strain YINM00001. Two new compounds, peperodione (1) and peperophthalene (2), and 17 known compounds were isolated from different fermentation broth. Large amounts and high diversity of antimicrobial and/or anticancer compounds cycloheximide, dinactin, anthracimycin, and their analogs had been found as predicted before, which highlights strain YINM00001 as an ideal candidate for further biosynthetic studies and production improvement of these valuable compounds. Meanwhile, several gene clusters that were highly conserved in several sequenced actinomycetes but significantly different from known gene clusters might be silent under proceeding fermentation conditions. Further studies, such as heterologous expression and genetic modification, are needed to explore more novel compounds from this talented endophytic Streptomyces strain.

Acupuncture Alleviates Menstrual Pain in Rat Model via Suppressing Eotaxin/CCR3 Axis to Weak EOS-MC Activation.

INTRODUCTION: Emerging data show that chemokine-mediated inflammation is involved in the occurrence and maintenance of pain. Recent evidence suggests that eotaxin levels rise when dysmenorrhea happens. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether eotaxin/CC chemokine receptor 3 (CCR3) axis, a key regulatory pathway for eosinophils (EOS) recruitment, is involved in acupuncture analgesia for dysmenorrhea. METHODS: After the cold congealing dysmenorrhea (CCD) rat model prepared, animals received perpendicular needling (PN) and transverse needling (TN) at SP6, respectively, for 20 min. The CCR3 agonist CCL11 was administered 30 min prior to acupuncture. Pain behavior was assessed via a writhing response. The uterine contraction test was detected by an electrophysiological method. Eotaxin, histamine (HIS), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were evaluated by ELISA. The expression of CCR3 and histamine H1 receptor (H1R) was analyzed by RT-qPCR and Western blot. The expression of EOS, mast cells (MCs), eosinophil peroxidase (EPO), and eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) was assessed by hematoxylin-eosin staining (HE), Toluidine Blue staining (TB), and immunohistochemistry, respectively. RESULTS: Acupuncture prominently attenuated the menstrual pain in CCD rats, particularly TN technique. Electrophysiological recording data showed that the increased uterine contractility was ameliorated by acupuncture. In addition, TN decreased the release of eotaxin, HIS, IL-6, and the expression of CCR3 and H1R. HE, TB staining, and immunohistochemistry experiments showed that the increased expression of EOS, MCs, EPO, and ECP in uterine tissues was reversed by TN. Furthermore, we found that the effects of TN against CCD-induced menstrual pain, increased ECP expression, and HIS level were abolished by CCL11. CONCLUSION: TN alleviated menstrual pain by improving the uterine inflammatory environment via suppressing eotaxin/CCR3 axis to weak EOS-MC activation in CCD rats. The study findings support the acupuncture as a promising approach for dysmenorrhea, meanwhile, indicating the importance of performing appropriate needling technique.