PubMed · 11439841
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J P Heptonstall. 2001. Physicians heal thyselves!. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11439841/
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In this study, effects of acupuncture at Zusanli acupoint on cell proliferation and expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY) in the dentate gyrus (DG) of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats were investigated. Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into six groups: the control group, the non-diabetic and Zusanli-acupunctured group, the non-diabetic and non-acupoint-acupunctured group, the streptozotocin-induced-diabetes group, the streptozotocin-induced-diabetes and Zusanli-acupunctured group, and the streptozotocin-induced-diabetes and non-acupoint-acupunctured group. In the streptozotocin-induced diabetes group, the mean 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine-positive and NPY-positive cell counts in the DG were significantly decreased compared to the control group. Stimulation of the Zusanli resulted in increased cell proliferation and neuropeptide Y levels in the diabetic group. In the present results, it can be suggested that acupuncture may affect cell proliferation in the DG of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats by regulating neuropeptide Y expression.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of laser acupuncture on cerebral activation. Using functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) cortical activations during laser acupuncture at the left foot (Bladder 67) and dummy acupuncture, were compared employing a block design in ten healthy male volunteers. All experiments were done on a 1.5 Tesla magnetic resonance scanner equipped with a circular polarized head coil. During laser acupuncture, we found activation in the cuneus corresponding to Brodmann Area (BA) 18 and the medial occipital gyrus (BA 19) of the ipsilateral visual cortex. Placebo stimulation did not show any activation. We could demonstrate that laser acupuncture of a specific acupoint, empirically related to ophthalmic disorders, leads to activation of visual brain areas, whereas placebo acupuncture does not. These results indicate that fMRI has the potential to elucidate effects of acupuncture on brain activity.
Acupuncture needle manipulation gives rise to "needle grasp," a biomechanical phenomenon characterized by an increase in the force necessary to pull the needle out of the tissue (pullout force). This study investigates the hypothesis that winding of connective tissue, rather than muscle contraction, is the mechanism responsible for needle grasp. We performed 1) measurements of pullout force in humans with and without needle penetration of muscle; 2) measurements of pullout force in anesthetized rats, with and without needle rotation, followed by measurements of connective tissue volume surrounding the needle; 3) imaging of rat abdominal wall explants, with and without needle rotation, using ultrasound scanning acoustic microscopy. We found 1) no evidence that increased penetration of muscle results in greater pullout force than increased penetration of subcutaneous tissue; 2) that both pullout force and subcutaneous tissue volume were increased by needle rotation; 3) that increased periodic architectural order was present in subcutaneous tissue with rotation, compared with no rotation. These data support connective tissue winding as the mechanism responsible for the increase in pullout force induced by needle rotation. Winding may allow needle movements to deliver a mechanical signal into the tissue and may be key to acupuncture's therapeutic mechanism.