Electroacupuncture at Dazhui (GV14) and Mingmen (GV4) protects against spinal cord injury: the role of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway

Wang, Xin; Shi, Suhua; Yao, Haiqiang; Jing, Quankai; Mo, Yuping; Lv, Wei; Song, Liangyu; Yuan, Xiaochen; Li, Zhigang; Qin, Lanfang

doi:10.4103/1673-5374.197145

Cited by 19 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…The Wnt signaling pathway plays an important role in the proliferation, differentiation, and axon orientation of NSCs. Wnt-1, the key element in the Wnt pathway, and the critical transcription factor β -catenin are highly expressed in the early stage of SCI, which is consistent with the reactive proliferation of endogenous NSCs of the spinal cord [ 39 , 40 ]. Xu et al [ 40 ] demonstrated that a fire needle at the Ex-B05 points promoted lower limb locomotor function in SCI rats.…”

Section: The Effect Of Acupuncture On Neural Restoration In Spinalmentioning

confidence: 79%

“…Moreover, they documented that the potential mechanism underlying the effect of acupuncture involves the stimulation of proliferation and differentiation of NSCs into neurons by the activation of the Wnt/ β -catenin pathway (Wnt-3a, GSK3, β -catenin, and ngn1) and inhibition of the overexpression of MAPK-ERK kinase/extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) and cyclin D1. Wang et al [ 39 ] found that the expression of Wnt-1, Wnt-3a, and β -catenin in the injured area was increased at 1, 7, and 14 days after SCI, while the expression of Wnt-1, Wnt-3a, and β -catenin was increased by EA at GV14 and GV4. These results suggest that GV EA may promote the regeneration of neurons by activating the Wnt/ β -catenin signaling pathway.…”

Section: The Effect Of Acupuncture On Neural Restoration In Spinalmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects and Mechanisms of Acupuncture Combined with Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation on Neural Recovery after Spinal Cord Injury: Progress and Prospects

et al. 2020

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Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a structural event with devastating consequences worldwide. Due to the limited intrinsic regenerative capacity of the spinal cord in adults, the neural restoration after SCI is difficult. Acupuncture is effective for SCI-induced neurologic deficits, and the potential mechanisms responsible for its effects involve neural protection by the inhibition of inflammation, oxidation, and apoptosis. Moreover, acupuncture promotes neural regeneration and axon sprouting by activating multiple cellular signal transduction pathways, such as the Wnt, Notch, and Rho/Rho kinase (ROCK) pathways. Several studies have demonstrated that the efficacy of combining acupuncture with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) transplantation is superior to either procedure alone. The advantage of the combined treatment is dependent on the ability of acupuncture to enhance the survival of MSCs, promote their differentiation into neurons, and facilitate targeted migration of MSCs to the spinal cord. Additionally, the differentiation of MSCs into neurons overcomes the problem of the shortage of endogenous neural stem cells (NSCs) in the acupuncture-treated SCI patients. Therefore, the combination of acupuncture and MSCs transplantation could become a novel and effective strategy for the treatment of SCI. Such a possibility needs to be verified by basic and clinical research.

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Section: The Effect Of Acupuncture On Neural Restoration In Spinalmentioning

confidence: 79%

Section: The Effect Of Acupuncture On Neural Restoration In Spinalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects and Mechanisms of Acupuncture Combined with Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation on Neural Recovery after Spinal Cord Injury: Progress and Prospects

et al. 2020

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“…However, there is an insufficient number of endogenous NSCs capable of differentiating into functional neurons, and the therapeutic effect of acupuncture can be inadequate. In spinal cord injuries, acupuncture promotes neural regeneration and axon sprouting by activating multiple cellular signal transduction pathways, such as the Wnt, Notch, and Rho/Rho kinase (ROCK) pathways [ 152 , 153 ]. Z. Liu found that the Governor Vessel electro-acupuncture (GV-EA) may activate the process of cell metabolism and initiate synthesis and secretion of endogenous neurotrophic factors in the ambient tissues at the lesion site of the spinal cord [ 154 ].…”

Section: Application Of the Tcm Theory Combined With Stem Cell Therap...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Combination of Stem Cells with Chinese Herbs for Secondary Depression in Neurodegenerative Diseases Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine Theories

Feng

Liao

et al. 2022

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

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Depression is a common secondary symptom in neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) caused by the loss of neurons and glial cells. Recent research focuses on stem cell therapy to replace dead nerve cells, but the low efficiency of stem cell differentiation and short survival time are obstacles limiting the therapy’s effectiveness. Clinically, patients with different diseases cannot obtain the same effect by using the same cell therapy. However, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) often uses syndrome differentiation to determine the treatment plan for NDs. Based on TCM syndrome differentiation and treatment, this article summarizes the advantages of Chinese herbal medicine combined with stem cell therapy, mainly for the effects of various herbs on diseases and stem cells, including prolonging the survival time of stem cells, resisting inflammation, and antidepressant-like effects. In particular, it analyzes the unique pathways of the influence of drugs and acupuncture on different therapies, seeking to clarify the scientific TCM system. This review mainly elaborates on the treatment of secondary depression in TCM and the advantages of a herbal combined stem cell therapy in various methods. We believe it can provide a new clinical concept for secondary depression to obtain good clinical effects and reduce the risks borne by patients.

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“…Furthermore, Tu and his group indicated that EA applied to GV4 and GV14 acupoints had a better influence on SCI in rats when (Tu et al, 2017). In addition, previous studies reported that EA stimulation of GV14 and GV4 upregulated Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway activation and neurotrophin 3 (NT‐3) expression levels (Mo et al, 2016; Wang et al, 2016). Furthermore, EA performed on the govern vessel also promotes NT‐3 expression and activates the c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK) signal transduction pathway to protect neurons, improve neuronal survival and inhibit apoptosis (Lv et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of electroacupuncture on glial scar generation in SCI model rats

Zhao

Shi

et al. 2023

The Anatomical Record

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Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a commonly occurring and severe form of central nervous system (CNS) injury. Previous studies have demonstrated that electroacupuncture (EA) therapy promotes recovery from SCI. In this study, we observed changes in the glial scars of rats with SCI to gain insight into how EA therapy positively influences locomotor function. The experimental rats were randomly divided into three groups: the sham group, the SCI group and the SCI + EA group. Rats in the SCI + EA group received a 28‐day treatment course using the Dazhui (GV14) acupoint and the Mingmen (GV4) acupoint for 20 min/day. The Basso–Beattie–Bresnahan (BBB) score was used to estimate the neural function of rats in all groups. We found that before sacrifice on Day 28, the BBB score was significantly improved in the SCI + EA group, which was higher than that observed in the SCI group. Hematoxylin–eosin staining revealed morphological improvements in spinal cord tissues of the rats in the EA + SCI group with reduced glial scars and cavities. Based on immunofluorescence staining, reactive astrocytes overpopulated both the SCI and SCI + EA groups following SCI. Moreover, improved generation of reactive astrocytes at lesions was observed in the SCI + EA group compared with the SCI group. After treatment, EA inhibited glial scar generation. EA effectively downregulated fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vimentin protein and mRNA expression levels, according to the results from Western blot assays and reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR). We hypothesized that these findings described might represent the mechanism underlying EA inhibition of glial scar generation, morphological improvements in tissues and promotion of neural recovery from SCI in rats.

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Electroacupuncture at Dazhui (GV14) and Mingmen (GV4) protects against spinal cord injury: the role of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway

Cited by 19 publications

References 29 publications

Effects and Mechanisms of Acupuncture Combined with Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation on Neural Recovery after Spinal Cord Injury: Progress and Prospects

Effects and Mechanisms of Acupuncture Combined with Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation on Neural Recovery after Spinal Cord Injury: Progress and Prospects

Combination of Stem Cells with Chinese Herbs for Secondary Depression in Neurodegenerative Diseases Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine Theories

Effects of electroacupuncture on glial scar generation in SCI model rats

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