Acupuncture and Meridian Science Research Center, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Neurochem Res. 2012 Oct;37(10):2092-8. doi: 10.1007/s11064-012-0830-1. Epub 2012 Jun 20.
The present study investigated the possible role of acupuncture in alleviating depression-like behavioral changes and examined changes in the levels of serotonin (5-HT), dopamine (DA), and their metabolites in the hippocampus (HP) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) of maternally separated rat pups. On postnatal day 15, rat pups were maternally separated and received acupuncture stimulation at acupoint HT7 or ST36 once a day for 7 days. Then, on postnatal day 21, a tail suspension test was performed, and the HP and PFC were harvested. Levels of 5-HT, 5-hydroxyindole-3-acetic acid (5-HIAA), DA, and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) in the tissue and corticosterone (CORT) in plasma were then measured. The total duration of immobility in maternally separated rat pups increased after maternal separation, and this increase was alleviated by acupuncture stimulation at HT7. The 5-HIAA/5-HT ratio and the levels of 5-HT and 5-HIAA were not significantly changed, but those of the DA and the DOPAC/DA ratio were significantly lower and that of CORT was significantly higher after maternal separation. The maternal separation-induced changes of the DOPAC/DA ratio and the CORT level significantly alleviated after acupuncture stimulation at HT7. These results suppose that the functional recovery of prefrontal-limbic system by acupuncture stimulation plays an important role in acupuncture-induced benefits in this animal model of depression.
本研究探讨了针刺可能在缓解抑郁样行为改变中的作用，并研究了针刺 HT7 或 ST36 对母鼠分离大鼠幼仔海马（HP）和前额叶皮层（PFC）中 5-羟色胺（5-HT）、多巴胺（DA）及其代谢物水平的影响。在产后第 15 天，将大鼠幼仔与母鼠分离，并每天接受一次 HT7 或 ST36 穴位的针刺刺激，共 7 天。然后，在产后第 21 天进行悬尾测试，并采集 HP 和 PFC。测量组织中的 5-HT、5-羟吲哚-3-乙酸（5-HIAA）、DA 和 3,4-二羟基苯乙酸（DOPAC）水平以及血浆中的皮质酮（CORT）水平。母鼠分离后，分离的大鼠幼仔的不动时间总时长增加，而 HT7 针刺刺激可减轻这种增加。5-HT 和 5-HIAA 的水平没有显著变化，但 5-HIAA/5-HT 比值和 DA 以及 DOPAC/DA 比值显著降低，CORT 水平显著升高。HT7 针刺刺激后，DOPAC/DA 比值和 CORT 水平的变化明显减轻。这些结果表明，针刺刺激对前额叶-边缘系统的功能恢复在这种抑郁动物模型中对针刺的益处起着重要作用。
