title: Electro-acupuncture at points of Zusanli and Quchi exerts anti-apoptotic effect through the modulation of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.
abstract: We evaluated the neuroprotective effect of electro-acupuncture (EA) on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury and deeply investigated the relationship between this neuroprotective effect and PI3K/Akt pathway. Rats underwent focal cerebral IR injured by suture method and received the in vivo therapeutic efficacy of EA at points of Zusanli(ST36) and Quchi(LI11) after the operation. We found that the EA treatment significantly (p<0.05) improved neurological deficit and cerebral infarction. Furthermore, EA profoundly activated PI3K/Akt signaling resulted in the inhibition of cerebral cell apoptosis in the ischemic penumbra. Simultaneously EA increased the expression of PI3K, p-Akt, p-Bad and Bcl-2 at the protein level and the expression of Bcl-2 at the mRNA level. On the contrary, EA inhibited the Bax and cleaved Caspase-3-positive expression. The selective PI3K inhibitor LY294002 compromised EA-induced neuroprotective effects and reduced the elevation of p-Akt, p-Bad and Bcl-2 levels. Our data suggested that the PI3K/Akt pathway played a critical role in mediating the neuroprotective effects of EA treatment at points of Zusanli and Quchi after the ischemic stroke.
authors.affiliation: College of Rehabilitation Medicine, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiehua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Osteology and Traumatology and Exercise Rehabilitation, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Yongmei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: You
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Osteology and Traumatology and Exercise Rehabilitation, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China. Electronic address: taojing01@yahoo.com.cn.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Exercise Rehabilitation, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiaoqian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Exercise Rehabilitation, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Exercise Rehabilitation, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Shanli
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Integrative Medicine on Geriatrics, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Zhicheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Integrative Medicine on Geriatrics, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Zhenfeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Fujian Key Laboratory of Integrative Medicine on Geriatrics, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Rehabilitation Medicine, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Minhou Shangjie, Fuzhou, Fujian 350108, PR China. Electronic address: lidianchen87@yahoo.com.cn.
authors.forename: Lidian
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D015669:Acupuncture Points; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D002544:Cerebral Infarction / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D002867:Chromones / Q000494:pharmacology; D015671:Electroacupuncture; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D007276:Injections, Intraventricular; D008297:Male; D009025:Morpholines / Q000494:pharmacology; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000502:physiology*; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000502:physiology*; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015427:Reperfusion Injury / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D002867:Chromones; D009025:Morpholines; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; C085911:2-(4-morpholinyl)-8-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one
keywords: 2,3,5-triphenyl tetra-zolium chloride; 2-(4-morpholinyl)-8-phenyl-1(4H)-benzopyran-4-one; Apoptosis; Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion; DMSO; EA; Electro-acupuncture; IR; LY294002; MCAO; Neuroprutective effect; PBS; PI3K/Akt; PVDF; TTC; TUNEL; dimethylsulfoxide; electro-acupuncture; ischemia/reperfusion; middle cerebral artery occlusion; phosphate buffered saline; phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B; polyvinylidene difluoride; terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling