Zhou Yu-Ling, Zhang Qian, Wang Yu-Jia, Hou Xun-Rui, Zhou Ke-An, Li Li-Hong
The Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang 550004.
Zhen Ci Yan Jiu. 2023 Apr 25;48(4):366-71. doi: 10.13702/j.1000-0607.20220837.
To observe the effect of acupoint injection on serum T helper (Th)1/Th2 related cytokines, and the expression levels of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) and activator protein-1 (AP-1) of nasal mucosa in allergic rhinitis (AR) rats, so as to explore its mechanism underlying improvement of AR.
Thirty-two SD rats were randomly divided into normal, model, non-acupoint injection and acupoint injection groups (=8 in each group). The AR model was established by ovalbumin sensitization. In the acupoint injection group, "Yintang" (GV24+) and bilateral "Yingxiang" (LI20) were selected for injection of mixture solution of dexamethasone and lidocaine (0.05 mL/acupoint), once every 4 days for a total of 4 times. The non-acupoints, located at the midpoint between the "Houhai" and "Huantiao" (GB30) on the bilateral hips and the sites 5 cm inferior to the axillary were injected with the same dose of mixture solution as that in the acupoint injection group. The AR severity was assessed by cumulative quantification scoring methods (including the numbers of nose-catching and sneezes, and the amount of nasal secretions in 30 min). The pathological changes of nasal mucosa were observed by HE staining. The contents of immunoglobulin E (IgE), interleukin (IL)-4 and interferon (IFN)-γ in serum were detected by ELISA. The expressions of TLR4 and MyD88 in nasal mucosa was detected by immunofluorescence. The expression of AP-1 in nasal mucosa was detected by Western blot.
Following modeling, the AR symptom score, serum IgE and IL-4 contents and expression of TLR4, MyD88 and AP-1 of nasal mucosa were significantly increased in the model group than those in the normal group (<0.01), while the serum IFN-γ content was significantly decreased (<0.01). Compared with the model group and non-acupoint injection group, the AR symptom score, the serum contents of IgE and IL-4 and the expressions of TLR4, MyD88 and AP-1 in nasal mucosa were significantly decreased in the acupoint injection group (<0.01, <0.05), while the serum IFN-γ content was significantly increased (<0.01). H.E. staining of the nasal mucosa showed that most of the epithelium fell off, the lamina propria vessels expanded, the glands proliferated, and eosinophils and lymphocytes infiltrated in the model and non-acupoint injection groups, and those were significantly improved in the acupoint injection group.
Acupoint injection can effectively improve allergic inflammation of the nose in AR rats, which may be related with its function in inhibiting the abnormal activation of TLR4/AP-1 signaling pathway and regulating the imbalance of Th1/Th2.
观察穴位注射对变应性鼻炎（AR）大鼠血清辅助性T（Th）1/Th2相关细胞因子及鼻黏膜Toll样受体4（TLR4）、髓样分化因子88（MyD88）和活化蛋白-1（AP-1）表达水平的影响，以探讨其改善AR的作用机制。
将32只SD大鼠随机分为正常组、模型组、非穴位注射组和穴位注射组（每组8只）。采用卵清蛋白致敏法建立AR模型。穴位注射组选取“印堂”（GV24）及双侧“迎香”（LI20）注射地塞米松与利多卡因混合液（0.05 mL/穴位），每4天注射1次，共注射4次。非穴位组选取双侧臀部“后海”与“环跳”（GB30）中点及腋窝下5 cm处，注射与穴位注射组相同剂量的混合液。采用累积定量评分法（包括30 min内抓鼻、喷嚏次数及鼻分泌物量）评估AR严重程度。通过苏木精-伊红（HE）染色观察鼻黏膜病理变化。采用酶联免疫吸附测定（ELISA）法检测血清免疫球蛋白E（IgE）、白细胞介素（IL）-4和干扰素（IFN）-γ含量。采用免疫荧光法检测鼻黏膜TLR4和MyD88表达。采用蛋白质印迹法检测鼻黏膜AP-1表达。
造模后，模型组AR症状评分、血清IgE和IL-4含量及鼻黏膜TLR4、MyD88和AP-1表达均显著高于正常组（P<0.01），而血清IFN-γ含量显著降低（P<0.01）。与模型组和非穴位注射组比较，穴位注射组AR症状评分、血清IgE和IL-4含量及鼻黏膜TLR4、MyD88和AP-1表达均显著降低（P<0.01，P<0.05），而血清IFN-γ含量显著升高（P<0.01）。鼻黏膜HE染色显示，模型组和非穴位注射组大部分上皮脱落，固有层血管扩张，腺体增生，嗜酸性粒细胞和淋巴细胞浸润，穴位注射组上述情况明显改善。
穴位注射可有效改善AR大鼠鼻部变应性炎症，其机制可能与抑制TLR4/AP-1信号通路异常激活及调节Th1/Th2失衡有关。
