The First Clinical Medical College, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730030, China; Key Laboratory of Gansu Provincial Prescription Mining and Innovative Translational Laboratory, Lanzhou 730030, China; Gansu Provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine New Product Creation Engineering Laboratory, Lanzhou 730030, China.
The First Clinical Medical College, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730030, China.
Exp Gerontol. 2024 Sep;194:112507. doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2024.112507. Epub 2024 Jul 10.
Gut microbiota and metabolites are considered key factors in the pathogenesis of perioperative neurocognitive disorders (PND), and the brain-gut axis may be a promising target for PND treatment. Electroacupuncture has been shown to improve a wide range of neurological disorders and to restore function to the gastrointestinal tract. Thus, we hypothesized whether electroacupuncture could remodel gut microbiota and neuroinflammation induced by anesthesia/surgery. First, we observed electroacupuncture at acupoints GV20, LI4 and PC6 significantly improved memory in behavioral tests. Next, we found electroacupuncture decreased the levels of inflammatory factors (NSE, S-100β, IL-6, etc.) in the hippocampus, indicating that nerve inflammation was blocked by electroacupuncture. Furthermore, via 16S rRNA sequence analysis and LC-MS analysis, the gut microbiota and its metabolites were appropriately restored after electroacupuncture treatment. Additionally, we further confirmed the restorative effect of electroacupuncture on PND by fecal transplantation. In conclusion, the role of electroacupuncture in improving cognitive function and protecting neurons may be related to the modulation of gut microbiota and their metabolite dysregulation, thereby inhibiting neuroinflammation in PND mice.
肠道微生物群和代谢物被认为是围手术期神经认知障碍（PND）发病机制中的关键因素，而脑-肠轴可能是治疗 PND 的有前途的靶点。电针已被证明可改善广泛的神经疾病，并恢复胃肠道功能。因此，我们假设电针对麻醉/手术引起的肠道微生物群和神经炎症是否具有重塑作用。首先，我们观察到电针对 GV20、LI4 和 PC6 穴位的刺激显著改善了行为测试中的记忆能力。接下来，我们发现电针降低了海马体中炎症因子（NSE、S-100β、IL-6 等）的水平，表明电针阻断了神经炎症。此外，通过 16S rRNA 序列分析和 LC-MS 分析，电针治疗后肠道微生物群及其代谢物得到适当恢复。此外，我们通过粪便移植进一步证实了电针对 PND 的恢复作用。总之，电针对改善认知功能和保护神经元的作用可能与调节肠道微生物群及其代谢物失调有关，从而抑制 PND 小鼠的神经炎症。
