Kawanami Hiroshi, Kawahata Hirohisa, Mori Hiroko-Miyuki, Aoki Motokuni
Graduate School of Health Sciences, Morinomiya University of Medical Sciences, Osaka, 559-8611, Japan.
Chin J Integr Med. 2020 Jan;26(1):26-32. doi: 10.1007/s11655-019-3083-x. Epub 2019 Nov 28.
To examine the effect of moxibustion on the wound healing process and its mechanism using a rat wound model.
Sixty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a sham-treated group (n=30, wound surgery only) and a moxibustion group (n=30, wound treated with moxibustion). Circular full-thickness skin wounds were produced in rats. Moxibustion was applied to the edge of wound and was continued on alternating days till 14 days after surgery, followed by measurement of wound size. Expression of collagens, prolyl-4-hydroxylase (P4H) and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) were evaluated by histochemical study and real-time polymerase chain reaction.
The size of the wound lesion was significantly reduced in rats treated with moxibustion as compared to that in sham-treated rats at 4-10 days after wounding (P<0.01). Moxibustion stimulated mRNA expression of collagens at 4 days (P<0.01), but not at 7 days, accompanied by enhanced proliferation of P4H-positive fibroblasts. Of importance, expression of TGF-β in tissue from the wound lesion treated with moxibustion was significantly increased as compared to that in sham-treated rats at 4 days (P<0.01 or P<0.05), but not at 7 days.
The treatment with moxibustion promoted the wound healing process in the early phase through proliferation of fibroblasts and rapid formation of granulation, possibly mediated by induction of TGF-β which is a key molecule in the physiological process of wound healing. Moxibustion can be expected to be effective as complementary treatment for intractable ulcers.
采用大鼠伤口模型研究艾灸对伤口愈合过程的影响及其机制。
将60只雄性Sprague-Dawley大鼠随机分为假手术组（n = 30，仅进行伤口手术）和艾灸组（n = 30，伤口接受艾灸治疗）。在大鼠身上制作圆形全层皮肤伤口。在伤口边缘进行艾灸，术后隔日持续艾灸直至术后14天，随后测量伤口大小。通过组织化学研究和实时聚合酶链反应评估胶原蛋白、脯氨酰-4-羟化酶（P4H）和转化生长因子-β（TGF-β）的表达。
与假手术组大鼠相比，艾灸治疗的大鼠在受伤后4 - 10天伤口病变大小显著减小（P < 0.01）。艾灸在第4天刺激了胶原蛋白的mRNA表达（P < 0.01），但在第7天未刺激，同时伴有P4H阳性成纤维细胞增殖增强。重要的是，与假手术组大鼠相比，艾灸治疗的伤口病变组织中TGF-β的表达在第4天显著增加（P < 0.01或P < 0.05），但在第7天未增加。
艾灸治疗通过成纤维细胞增殖和肉芽组织快速形成促进了早期伤口愈合过程，可能是由诱导TGF-β介导的，TGF-β是伤口愈合生理过程中的关键分子。艾灸有望作为难治性溃疡的辅助治疗方法发挥作用。
