Department of Acupuncture and Massage Rehabilitation, Neuroscience Center, Integrated Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; Department of Rheumatic & TCM Medical Center, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Neuroscience. 2023 Nov 10;532:23-36. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.09.007. Epub 2023 Sep 21.
Previous study showed that electroacupuncture (EA) produced a protective effect on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI) in rats and may correlate with the anti-inflammatory effects of microglia. This study aimed to investigate further whether EA could modulate neuroinflammation by targeting the Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 6 (STAT6) and Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor γ (PPARγ) pathway, the key regulator of microglia. Middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rats were used, and 6 h after reperfusion, EA interventions were performed in Chize (LU 5), Hegu (LI 4), Sanyinjiao (SP 6), and Zusanli (ST 36) on the affected side of the rats, the group that received EA + STAT6 phosphorylation inhibitor AS1517499 was used as a parallel control. The degree of neurological impairment, infarct volume, microglia polarization, inflammation levels and activity of STAT6/PPARγ pathway were then assessed by neurological deficit score, triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, immunofluorescence, western blotting (WB), quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The data showed that EA significantly alleviated nerve injury, reduced infarct volume, enhanced the expression and activity of STAT6/PPARγ pathway, inhibited NF-κB activity, increased M2 microglia numbers and anti-inflammatory factor release, and inhibited microglia M1-type polarization and pro-inflammatory factor expression. In contrast, inhibition of STAT6 phosphorylation exacerbated neural damage, inhibited STAT6/PPARγ pathway activity, promoted microglia M1-type polarization and exacerbated neuroinflammation, resulting in an attenuated positive effect of EA intervention. Therefore, we concluded that EA intervention could attenuate microglia-associated neuroinflammation by enhancing the expression and activity of STAT6/PPARγ pathway, thereby reducing CIRI in MCAO rats.
先前的研究表明,电针(EA)对大鼠脑缺血再灌注损伤(CIRI)具有保护作用,可能与小胶质细胞的抗炎作用有关。本研究旨在进一步探讨 EA 是否可以通过靶向信号转导和转录激活因子 6(STAT6)和过氧化物酶体增殖物激活受体 γ(PPARγ)通路来调节神经炎症,该通路是小胶质细胞的关键调节因子。使用大脑中动脉闭塞(MCAO)大鼠模型,在再灌注后 6 小时,在大鼠受影响侧的尺泽(LU 5)、合谷(LI 4)、三阴交(SP 6)和足三里(ST 36)进行 EA 干预,同时使用接受 EA + STAT6 磷酸化抑制剂 AS1517499 的组作为平行对照。然后通过神经功能缺损评分、三苯基四氮唑氯化物(TTC)染色、免疫荧光、Western blot(WB)、实时定量 PCR(qPCR)和酶联免疫吸附测定(ELISA)评估神经损伤程度、梗死体积、小胶质细胞极化、炎症水平和 STAT6/PPARγ 通路活性。数据显示,EA 显著减轻神经损伤,减少梗死体积,增强 STAT6/PPARγ 通路的表达和活性,抑制 NF-κB 活性,增加 M2 型小胶质细胞数量和抗炎因子释放,并抑制小胶质细胞 M1 型极化和促炎因子表达。相比之下,抑制 STAT6 磷酸化会加重神经损伤,抑制 STAT6/PPARγ 通路活性,促进小胶质细胞 M1 型极化,加剧神经炎症,从而减弱 EA 干预的积极作用。因此,我们得出结论,EA 干预可以通过增强 STAT6/PPARγ 通路的表达和活性来减轻与小胶质细胞相关的神经炎症,从而减轻 MCAO 大鼠的 CIRI。