Acupuncture stimulation of the vision-related acupoint (Bl-67) increases c-Fos expression in the visual cortex of binocularly deprived rat pups.
Our previous study with functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated that acupuncture stimulation of the vision-related acupoint, B1-67, activates the visual cortex of the human brain. As a further study on the effect of B1-67 acupuncture stimulation on the visual cortex, we examined c-Fos expression in binocularly deprived rat pups. Binocular deprivation significantly reduced the number of c-Fos-positive cells in the primary visual cortex, compared with that of normal control rat pups. Interestingly, acupuncture stimulation of B1-67 resulted in a significant increase in the number of c-Fos-positive cells in the primary visual cortex, while acupuncture stimulation of other acupoints less important for visual function had no significant effect on c-Fos expression in the primary visual cortex. The results suggest the possibility of vision-related acupoint (B1-67) having an influence over the activity of the primary visual cortex.
Lee
Hyangsook
H
Department of Oriental Medical Science, Graduate School of East-West Medical Science, Kyung Hee University, Yongin, Korea.
Park
Hi-Joon
HJ
Kim
Soon Ae
SA
Lee
Hee Jae
HJ
Kim
Mi Ja
MJ
Kim
Chang-Ju
CJ
Chung
Joo-Ho
JH
Lee
Hyejung
H
D015669:Acupuncture Points; D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000502:physiology; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D023421:Models, Animal; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015348:Vision, Binocular; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos