Neurotrophic Signaling Factors in Brain Ischemia/Reperfusion Rats: Differential Modulation Pattern between Single-Time and Multiple Electroacupuncture Stimulation.

Changpeng Wang,Xiaoyan Liu,Yun Zheng,Jingchun Guo,Ming Liu,Fan Yang

doi:10.1155/2014/625050

Changpeng Wang, Xiaoyan Liu + Show 4 more

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https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/625050

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Abstract

Electroacupuncture (EA) treatment has been widely used for stroke-like disorders in traditional Chinese medicine. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Our previous studies showed that single-time EA stimulation at “Baihui” (GV 20) and “Shuigou” (GV 26) after the onset of ischemia can protect the brain against ischemic injury in rats with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Here, we further investigated the differential effects between multiple EA and single-time EA stimulation on ischemic injury. In the present study, we found that both single-time EA and multiple EA stimulation significantly reduced MCAO-induced ischemic infarction, while only multiple EA attenuated sensorimotor dysfunctions. Also, with PCR array screening and ingenuity gene analysis, we revealed that multiple EA and single-time EA stimulation could differentially induce expression changes in neurotrophic signaling related genes. Meanwhile, with western blotting, we demonstrated that the level of glia maturation factor β (GMFβ) increased in the early stage (day 1) of reperfusion, and this upregulation was suppressed only by single-time EA stimulation. These findings suggest that the short-term effect of single-time EA stimulation differs from the cumulative effect of multiple EA, which possibly depends on their differential modulation on neurotrophic signaling molecules expression.

Highlights

Stroke causes neurological injury and ranks the third mortality in the world
In the sham operated group, no infarction was seen after reperfusion. These results suggested that both single-time EA and multiple EA stimulation could attenuate ischemia-induced infarction
Since we have found that multiple EA stimulation improves sensorimotor ability of ischemic rats, in this study, to further investigate gene expression changes in ischemic striatum under EA treatment, we detected the expression changes in mRNA level of a total 96 candidate genes (45 related to neurotrophins and their receptors, 10 related to neuropeptides and their receptors, 7 related to growth factors and their receptors, 10 related to cytokines and their receptors, 2 related to chemotactic factors and their receptors, 16 related to signal molecules, and 6 related to apoptosis-associated genes) at days 1 and 7 of ischemia/reperfusion with or without EA treatment

Summary

Introduction

Stroke causes neurological injury and ranks the third mortality in the world. Interventions focusing on neuroprotection have been extensively explored in animal stroke models. Safe and efficacious treatment strategies are still limited in clinic. Acupuncture treatment is one of important therapeutic means in traditional Chinese medicine. It has been used to treat patients with stroke-like disorders for thousand years in China. In recent years, accumulating evidence from patients and experimental animals shows that acupuncture or electroacupuncture (EA) may initiate complex changes in neural-active genes and proteins in brain and exert protective effects against ischemic injury, as indicating a possible neuralrelated modulation effect of acupuncture in stroke treatment [1].

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