title: The Limbic-Prefrontal Network Modulated by Electroacupuncture at CV4 and CV12.
abstract: fMRI studies showed that acupuncture could induce hemodynamic changes in brain networks. Many of these studies focused on whether specific acupoints could activate specific brain regions and were often limited to manual acupuncture at acupoints on the limbs. In this fMRI study, we investigated acupuncture's modulation effects on brain functional networks by electroacupuncture (EA) at acupoints on the midline of abdomen. Acupoints Guanyuan (CV4) and Zhongwan (CV12) were stimulated in 21 healthy volunteers. The needling sensations, brain activation, and functional connectivity were studied. We found that the limbic-prefrontal functional network was deactivated by EA at CV4 and CV12. More importantly, the local functional connectivity was significantly changed during EA stimulation, and the change persisted during the period after the stimulation. Although minor differences existed, both acupoints similarly modulated the limbic-prefrontal functional network, which is overlapped with the functional circuits associated with emotional and cognitive regulation.
authors.affiliation: Functional Brain Imaging Lab, Department of Radiology, Guang An Men Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100053, China.
authors.forename: Jiliang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Xiaoling
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Hesheng
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Yin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Kehua
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Baoyan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhu