Effect of liver-soothing and mind-regulating acupuncture on resting-state electroencephalographic signals in rats with post-traumatic stress disorder

Abstract

To observe the effect of liver-soothing and mind-regulating acupuncture method on the resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) in rats with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and to provide evidence for the effect mechanism study and clinical application of acupuncture intervention for PTSD. Sixty Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a blank control group, a model group, a grasping group, a paroxetine group and an acupuncture group, with 12 rats in each group. Except for rats in the blank control group, rats in the other groups were subjected to preparing the PTSD models using ‘incarceration plus electric shock’ method. After interventions, changes in rat behavior of each group were observed; changes in resting-state EEG were collected and analyzed with multichannel EEG acquisition and analysis system, and image analysis and statistical processing were performed. Compared with the blank control group, the average escape latency in the model group was significantly longer (P 0.05). Compared with the blank control group, the α-wave power spectrum value in the model group was significantly decreased, and the power spectrum values of β-wave, δ-wave and э-wave were significantly increased (all P 0.05). Liver-soothing and mind-regulating acupuncture method can significantly improve the abnormal EEG activity in PTSD rats, which may be one mechanism of liver-soothing and mind-regulating acupuncture method in effectively affecting the brain function in PTSD rats.