Basic Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2017. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Apr 28, 2017; 23(16): 2928-2939
Published online Apr 28, 2017. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v23.i16.2928
Comparison of the analgesic effects between electro-acupuncture and moxibustion with visceral hypersensitivity rats in irritable bowel syndrome
Ji-Meng Zhao, Liang Li, Liu Chen, Yin Shi, Yu-Wei Li, Hai-Xia Shang, Lu-Yi Wu, Zhi-Jun Weng, Chun-Hui Bao, Huan-Gan Wu
Ji-Meng Zhao, Yin Shi, Zhi-Jun Weng, Chun-Hui Bao, Huan-Gan Wu, Shanghai Institute of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Meridian, Shanghai 200030, China
Liang Li, Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
Liu Chen, Yu-Wei Li, Hai-Xia Shang, Lu-Yi Wu, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 201203, China
Author contributions: Zhao JM, Li L and Chen L contributed equally to this work; Shi Y and Wu HG designed the research; Zhao JM, Li L and Chen L performed the research; Li YW, Shang HX and Wu LY analyzed the data; Zhao JM, Li L and Chen L wrote the paper; Weng ZJ and Bao CH made critical revisions to this manuscript.
Supported by National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program), No. 2009CB522900 and No. 2015CB554501; and National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30973784.
Institutional review board statement: The study was review and approved by the Ethics Committee of Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Institutional animal care and use committee statement: All animals used in this study were treated according the “Beijing Administration Rule of Laboratory Animals”.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest related to this study.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Yin Shi, PhD, Shanghai Institute of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Meridian, No. 650 South Wanping Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai 200030, China. flysy0636@163.com
Telephone: +86-21-64383910 Fax: +86-21-64390339
Received: September 20, 2016
Peer-review started: September 22, 2016
First decision: January 10, 2017
Revised: January 24, 2017
Accepted: February 16, 2017
Article in press: February 16, 2017
Published online: April 28, 2017
Processing time: 219 Days and 19 Hours
Abstract
AIM

To observe whether there are differences in the effects of electro-acupuncture (EA) and moxibustion (Mox) in rats with visceral hypersensitivity.

METHODS

EA at 1 mA and 3 mA and Mox at 43 °C and 46 °C were applied to the Shangjuxu (ST37, bilateral) acupoints in model rats with visceral hypersensitivity. Responses of wide dynamic range neurons in dorsal horns of the spinal cord were observed through the extracellular recordings. Mast cells (MC) activity in the colons of rats were assessed, and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), 5-hydroxytryptamine 3 receptor (5-HT3R) and 5-HT4R expressions in the colons were measured.

RESULTS

Compared with normal control group, responses of wide dynamic range neurons in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord were increased in the EA at 1 mA and 3 mA groups (1 mA: 0.84 ± 0.74 vs 2.73 ± 0.65, P < 0.001; 3 mA: 1.91 ± 1.48 vs 6.44 ± 1.26, P < 0.001) and Mox at 43 °C and 46 °C groups (43 °C: 1.76 ± 0.81 vs 4.14 ± 1.83, P = 0.001; 46 °C: 5.19 ± 2.03 vs 7.91 ± 2.27, P = 0.01). MC degranulation rates and the expression of 5-HT, 5-HT3R and 5-HT4R in the colon of Mox 46 °C group were decreased compared with model group (MC degranulation rates: 0.47 ± 0.56 vs 0.28 ± 0.78, P < 0.001; 5-HT: 1.42 ± 0.65 vs 7.38 ± 1.12, P < 0.001; 5-HT3R: 6.62 ± 0.77 vs 2.86 ± 0.88, P < 0.001; 5-HT4R: 4.62 ± 0.65 vs 2.22 ± 0.97, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The analgesic effects of Mox at 46 °C are greater than those of Mox at 43 °C, EA 1 mA and EA 3 mA.

Keywords: Electro-acupuncture; Moxibustion; Visceral hypersensitivity; Analgesic effect; Rats

Core tip: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional gastrointestinal disorder, and the visceral hypersensitivity is considered to be one of the most important factors in its pathogenesis. Both acupuncture and moxibustion can regulate visceral hypersensitivity in IBS; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The present study is designed to observe whether there are differences in the effects of electro-acupuncture with different current intensities and moxibustion at varying temperatures on visceral hypersensitivity and to explore the potential analgesic mechanisms of these two stimulations.