title: Therapeutic effect of acupuncture in BALB/c model of cutaneous leishmaniasis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Current research findings demonstrate that acupuncture, a traditional Chinese medicine, has beneficial effects on several acute and chronic infectious and inflammatory diseases. Acupuncture promotes tissue healing and regulates immune response in various disease conditions. Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a parasitic disease caused by protozoan from genus Leishmania. Acupuncture is supposed to accelerate healing of CL because of common mechanisms involved in the cure of the CL lesions.
  
  
  METHODS
  60 BALB/c mice were experimentally infected with L. major strain MRHO/IR/75/ER and divided into three groups: (1) Treatment group received acupuncture 2 times a week for 5 weeks (10 sessions) with intraperitoneal diazepam as a sedative agent. (2) Diazepam control group only received diazepam the same as the treatment group. (3) Control group did not receive any intervention. Size of the lesions was measured before the experiment, on session 5 and 10 and 4 weeks after the experiment. Parasite burden was evaluated by microscopic assay as well as quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction technique.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Size of the lesions decreased significantly on session 5 in treated group in comparison with session 0 (P = 0.02) while the size of the lesions increased significantly in two control groups on session 5 and 4 weeks after treatment (P = 0.04 and P = 0.01 respectively). Mean parasite burden did not show a significant difference between or within groups on session 0 and 10 by any methods.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This investigation showed that acupuncture decreased size of the CL lesions by session 5 in the BALB/c mice model, but did not cause a significant reduction in parasite burden.
authors: Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Mahshid
authors: M
authors: Shakibapour
authors: Department of Parasitology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors: Mohsen
authors: M
authors: Mahmoodi
authors: Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Shervin Ghaffari
authors: SG
authors: Hoseini
authors: Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Isfahan University, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Fatemeh
authors: F
authors: Rostami
authors: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, School of Health, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Marjan
authors: M
authors: Mansurian
authors: National Institute of Health Research, Health Research Station, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Reza
authors: R
authors: Jafari
authors: Department of Parasitology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors: Shahrokh
authors: S
authors: Izadi
authors: Department of Parasitology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors: Sorour
authors: S
authors: Charehdar
authors: Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors: Seyed Hossein
authors: SH
authors: Hejazi
keywords: Acupuncture; BALB/c; Leishmania major; real-time polymerase chain reaction