Xu Xiaoru, Feng Xiangru, He Min, Zhang Zepeng, Wang Jiajia, Zhu Haiyu, Li Tie, Wang Fuchun, Sun Mengmeng, Wang Zhihong
1Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, No. 1035, Boshuo Rd, Jingyue Economic Development District, Changchun, 130117 China.
2Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 5625 Renmin Street, Changchun, 130022 People's Republic of China.
Chin Med. 2020 Apr 7;15:33. doi: 10.1186/s13020-020-00315-z. eCollection 2020.
Cancer is a complex systemic disease. As a key component of traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture is a clinically proven medical treatment for many diseases, and it also has preventative effects as it balances the body, allowing it to self-regulate. For cancer patients, acupuncture is widely used as complementary therapy to boost the immune system and reduce the side effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. However, few studies have determined how acupuncture against cancer, especially in regulating the intestinal flora of the tumor-burdened mice.
We treated osteosarcoma tumor-burdened mice by using needling on different acupoints and acupoints combination, thereafter determined the effects of acupuncture on tumor growth by using imaging technology in vitro. In addition, intestinal bacteria were analyzed for further understanding the holistic and systemic treatment effects of acupuncture in osteosarcoma tumor-burdened mice.
Acupuncture treatment can delay tumor growth and changes of intestinal bacteria in osteosarcoma tumor-burdened mice. In detail, the loss of body weight and the development of tumor volume of mice have been postposed by needling specific acupoints. In addition, acupuncture treatment has delayed the changes of the relative abundance of , and at the phylum level. Moreover, the relative abundance of many bacteria (e.g., , and ) has been regulated by using acupuncture treatment, and the trend of structural changes of these bacteria at the genus level has also been postposed compared to that of the tumor-burdened mice model group.
Our results suggest that acupuncture may provide a systemic treatment for cancer. Our findings encourage new and extensive research into the effects of acupuncture on changes of the intestinal microbiome associated with the development of cancer.
癌症是一种复杂的全身性疾病。针灸作为中医的关键组成部分，是一种经临床验证对多种疾病有效的治疗方法，它还具有预防作用，因为它能平衡身体，使其自我调节。对于癌症患者，针灸被广泛用作辅助疗法，以增强免疫系统并减轻放疗和化疗的副作用。然而，很少有研究确定针灸如何对抗癌症，尤其是在调节荷瘤小鼠肠道菌群方面。
我们通过针刺不同穴位和穴位组合来治疗荷骨肉瘤小鼠，然后使用体外成像技术确定针灸对肿瘤生长的影响。此外，对肠道细菌进行分析，以进一步了解针灸对荷骨肉瘤小鼠的整体和全身治疗效果。
针灸治疗可延缓荷骨肉瘤小鼠的肿瘤生长和肠道细菌变化。具体而言，针刺特定穴位可延缓小鼠体重减轻和肿瘤体积增大。此外，针灸治疗延缓了门水平上、和的相对丰度变化。而且，通过针灸治疗调节了许多细菌（如、和）的相对丰度，与荷瘤小鼠模型组相比，这些细菌在属水平上的结构变化趋势也被延缓。
我们的结果表明，针灸可能为癌症提供全身性治疗。我们的发现鼓励对针灸对与癌症发展相关的肠道微生物群变化的影响进行新的广泛研究。
