School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2024 Jan 12;14:1330565. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1330565. eCollection 2023.
Metabolic defects play a crucial role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) development. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has been identified as a novel potential therapeutic target for AD due to its unique role in energy metabolism. Electroacupuncture (EA) shows promise in improving cognitive ability and brain glucose metabolism in AD, but its effects on peripheral and central metabolism are unclear.
In this study, SAMP8 mice (AD model) received EA stimulation at specific acupoints. Cognitive abilities were evaluated using the Morris water maze test, while neuronal morphology and tau pathology were assessed through Nissl staining and immunofluorescence staining, respectively. Metabolic variations and BAT thermogenesis were measured using ELISA, HE staining, Western blotting, and infrared thermal imaging.
Compared to SAMR1 mice, SAMP8 mice showed impaired cognitive ability, neuronal damage, disrupted thermoregulation, and metabolic disorders with low BAT activity. Both the EA and DD groups improved cognitive ability and decreased tau phosphorylation (p<0.01 or p<0.05). However, only the EA group had a significant effect on metabolic disorders and BAT thermogenesis (p<0.01 or p<0.05), while the DD group did not.
These findings indicate that EA not only improves the cognitive ability of SAMP8 mice, but also effectively regulates peripheral and central metabolic disorders, with this effect being significantly related to the activation of BAT thermogenesis.
代谢缺陷在阿尔茨海默病（AD）的发展中起着至关重要的作用。由于棕色脂肪组织（BAT）在能量代谢中的独特作用，它已被确定为 AD 的一个新的潜在治疗靶点。电针（EA）在改善 AD 认知能力和大脑葡萄糖代谢方面显示出良好的效果，但它对周围和中枢代谢的影响尚不清楚。
在这项研究中，SAMP8 小鼠（AD 模型）接受了特定穴位的 EA 刺激。使用 Morris 水迷宫测试评估认知能力，通过尼氏染色和免疫荧光染色评估神经元形态和 tau 病理学。使用 ELISA、HE 染色、Western blot 和红外热成像测量代谢变化和 BAT 产热。
与 SAMR1 小鼠相比，SAMP8 小鼠表现出认知能力受损、神经元损伤、体温调节紊乱和代谢紊乱，BAT 活性低。EA 和 DD 组均改善了认知能力，降低了 tau 磷酸化（p<0.01 或 p<0.05）。然而，只有 EA 组对代谢紊乱和 BAT 产热有显著影响（p<0.01 或 p<0.05），而 DD 组没有。
这些发现表明，EA 不仅改善了 SAMP8 小鼠的认知能力，而且有效调节了周围和中枢代谢紊乱，这种效果与 BAT 产热的激活密切相关。
