[Experimental study on changes of expressions of ER-alpha and ER-alpha mRNA in different hypothalamic nuclei and the effect of "preventive acupuncture and moxibustion" in ovariectomy rats].
OBJECTIVE
To explore the mechanism of "preventive acupuncture and moxibustion" for regulating hypothalamic function in ovariectomy rats.


METHODS
Thirty female SD rats, aged 3.5 months, were randomly divided into normal group, sham operation group, ovariectomy model group, preventive acupuncture group and preventive moxibustion group. After "preventive acupuncture and moxibustion" were previously given to the preventive acupuncture group and the preventive moxibustion group for one month, respectively. At the same time, ovarietomy was made in the preventive acupuncture group, the preventive moxibustion group and the ovariectomy model group. For the sham operation group, only a little fat around the ovary was removed without ovariectomy, and nothing was not applied to the normal group. Immunohistochemical and in situs hybridization methods were used to investigate changes of expressions of ER-alpha and ER-alpha mRNA in paraventricular nucleus, supraoptic nucleus and arcuate nucleus.


RESULTS
In the model group the expressions of ER-alpha and ER-alpha mRNA in paraventricular nucleus and the expression of ER-alpha mRNA in supraoptic nucleus increased significantly (P<0.01), but the expression of ER-alpha dropped significantly in both supraoptic nucleus and arcuate nucleus (P<0.01). After preconditioning with acupuncture or moxibustion, the expression of ER-alpha mRNA in paraventricular nucleus significantly reduced (P<0.05), and the expression of ER-alpha had no significant change (P>0.05); the expression of ER-alpha in supraoptic nucleus and arcuate nucleus significantly increased (P<0.01 or P<0.05), and the expression of ER-alpha mRNA in paraventricular nucleus had no significant change (P>0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
"Preventive acupuncture and moxibustion" at "Guanyuan" (CV 4) have an effect on the expressions of ER-alpha and ER-alpha mRNA in different hypothalamic nuclei in ovariectomy rats, which possibly is one of the ways for modulating the hypothalamic activity.
Li
Xiao-hong
XH
Acupuncture School of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100029, China. xiaohong_li@sina.com
Zheng
Ling
L
Xie
Jie-ping
JP
Zhang
Lu-fen
LF
Zhai
Jing-hui
JH
Zhou
Jun
J
Tian
Yang-chun
YC
Zhou
Deng-fang
DF
He
Yu-wei
YW
Qu
Li-min
LM
D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000818:Animals; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D047628:Estrogen Receptor alpha / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000378:metabolism*; D009071:Moxibustion; D010052:Ovariectomy; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
D047628:Estrogen Receptor alpha; D012333:RNA, Messenger