Investigation of Therapeutic Response Markers for Acupuncture in Parkinson’s Disease: An Exploratory Pilot Study

Abstract

In this preliminary pilot study, we investigated the specific genes implicated in the therapeutic response to acupuncture in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Transcriptome alterations following acupuncture in blood samples collected during our previous clinical trial were analyzed along with the clinical data of six patients with PD, of which a representative patient was selected for transcriptomic analysis following acupuncture. We also examined the changes in the expression of PD biomarker genes known to be dysregulated in both the brain and blood of patients with PD. We validated these gene expression changes using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) in the blood of the remaining five patients with PD who received acupuncture treatment. Following acupuncture treatment, the transcriptomic alterations in the representative patient were similar to those induced by dopaminergic therapy. Among the PD biomarkers, ankyrin repeat domain 22 (ANKRD22), upregulated following dopaminergic therapy, and synapsin 1 (SYN1), a common gene marker for synaptic dysfunction in PD, were upregulated following acupuncture. These alterations correlated with changes in gait parameters in patients with PD. Our data suggest ANKRD22 and SYN1 as potential biomarkers to predict/monitor therapeutic responses to acupuncture in patients with PD, especially in those with gait disturbance. Further research is needed to confirm these findings in a large sample of patients with PD.

Parkinson’s Disease Subtyping Using Clinical Features and Biomarkers: Literature Review and Preliminary Study of Subtype Clustering

“…Several studies on the post-mortem brain of PD also suggested SYN1 as one of the PD biomarkers [ 118 , 119 , 120 ]. Among them, SYN1 and ANKRD22 were proposed as therapeutic response markers in blood samples of PD [ 121 ]. Additionally, the pathogenesis of PD, such as dysregulation of mitochondria, the ubiquitin–proteasome system, metabolism, and oxidative system, was captured in the transcriptome signature from the blood of patients with PD [ 122 ].…”

Exploring the mechanism of acupuncture for Parkinson's disease based on network pharmacology techniques

“…The GEO database at (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/) was searched with the keyword "Acupuncture Parkinson's Disease" at, and the human species was selected to obtain the transcriptomic data of acupuncture for Parkinson's disease. Transcriptomic data of Parkinson's patients were obtained from [12], and their associated GSE178470 matrix and platform files were downloaded and saved as Excel datasheets, the obtained data were organized and summarized. By taking the mean and logarithm, the data with different change trends after 5 and 8 treatment sessions were removed, and the targets with |log2FC| > 1 were screened as potential targets of acupuncture action.…”

Electroacupuncture blocked motor dysfunction and gut barrier damage by modulating intestinal NLRP3 inflammasome in MPTP-induced Parkinson's disease mice

“…Acupuncture, originating from “acupuncture stones,” is the essence of traditional Chinese medicine and is recognized as a natural treatment without annoying side effects. Acupuncture plays a conspicuous role in the therapy of PD, which not only improves motor symptoms such as tremors and shuffling but also effectively relieves non-motor symptoms such as constipation, depression, and insomnia [ [3] , [4] , [5] ]. However, it remains unclear about the mechanism underlying the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) in PD.…”