OBJECTIVETo compare the efficacy differences between acupuncture at Zhibian (BL 54) through Shuidao (ST 28) and regular acupuncture for polycystic ovary syndrome.

METHODSOne hundred and one patients, by using random digital table, were randomly divided into an observation group (49 cases) and a control group (52 cases). Patients in the observation group were treated with acupuncture at Zhibian (BL 54) through Shuidao (ST 28) as main acupoints, and accompanied acupoints were selected according to syndrome differentiation. Elongated needles (175 mm in length) were inserted at Zhibian (BL 54) with an angle of 200 with sagittal plane. The insertion depth was 100-115 mm, reaching Shuidao (ST 28) and making acupuncture sensation arrive at diseased location. Patients in the control group were treated at the same acupoints with regular acupuncture technique. The menstruation condition was ignored for patients in both groups. The treatment was given once a day, 15 times as one session, and 5 consecutive sessions were given. The basic temperature and level of sex hormone were observed before and after treatment in the two groups, and clinical efficacy was compared.

RESULTSThe cured rate was 65.3% (32/49) and the effective rate was 91.8% (45/49) in the observation group after treatment, which was significantly superior to 48.1% (25/52) and 63.5% (33/52) in the control group (both P<0.01). The number of patients with typical biphasic fever and patients with atypical biphasic fever in the observation group was higher, than that in the control group, but that of unidirectional temperature was less than that in the control group (P<0.05). After treatment, the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), LH/FSH, testos terone (T) were significantly reduced in the observation group (P<0.01, P<0.05); the LH and T were also apparently reduced in the control group (P<.01, P<0.05). The reduction of FSH, LH, LH/FSH and T in the observation group after treatment was more significant than that in the control group (P<0.05, P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONAcuouncture at Zhibian (BL 54) through Shuidao (ST 28) could significantly improve the basic temperature of patients with polycystic ovary syndrome, and regulate hormone level of reproductive endocrine, which is superior to regular acupuncture.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Female ; Follicle Stimulating Hormone ; blood ; Humans ; Luteinizing Hormone ; blood ; Middle Aged ; Polycystic Ovary Syndrome ; blood ; therapy

There are three major ways of for the treatments of post-stroke cognitive impairment.Medicine,acupuncture and the cognitive training is the most popular.Both clinical reports and experimental studies proved positive effect of acupuncture to post-stroke cognitive function impairment.There are more clinical reports and comprehensive mechanism studies on the Brain-activating and Orifice-opening Acupuncture than the other two popular treatments of acupuncture for cognitive function impairment.Acupuncture show positive effect on post-stroke cognitive function impairment.Further studies are required to validate whether acupuncture has better curative effect than cognitive training.

Objective To observe the effects of grain-sized moxibustion on Th1 cell/Th2 cell(Th1/Th2)balance and transcription factors T-box transcription factor(T-bet)and GATA binding protein 3(GATA3)in immunosuppressive mice induced by chemotherapy.Methods According to the random number table method,32 SPF male CD-1(ICR)mice were randomly divided into the normal group,model group,levamisole hydrochloride group,and grain-sized moxibustion group,with eight mice per group.Except for the normal group,the immunosuppressive model was established by intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide(80 mg/kg,once daily for three consecutive days).Mice in the levamisole hydrochloride group were given levamisole hydrochloride solution(10 mg/kg)by gavage.Mice in the grain-sized moxibustion group was given grain-sized moxibustion at"Guanyuan"(CV4),bilateral"Zusanli"(ST36),and bilateral"Sanyinjiao"(SP6),with three Zhuang at each acupoint for approximately 30 s each.The intervention was administered once daily for seven consecutive days.The general condition of mice was observed.The spleen mass and spleen index were detected.The pathological changes of spleen tissue were observed by HE staining.The protein and mRNA expressions of T-bet,GATA3,interferon-γ(IFN-γ),and interleukin(IL)-4 in spleen tissue of mice were detected by Western blotting and real-time PCR.The contents of IFN-γ,IL-2,and IL-4 in serum of mice were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Results Compared with the normal group,the mice in the model group were slow in response,unstable in gait;the spleen weight and spleen index were increased(P<0.05);the structure of spleen tissue was disordered,the mRNA and protein expressions of T-bet and IFN-γ in spleen tissue were decreased,and the mRNA and protein expressions of GATA3 and IL-4 were increased(P<0.05);the contents of IFN-γ and IL-2 in serum were decreased,and the content of IL-4 was increased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the general condition of mice in the levamisole hydrochloride group and the grain-sized moxibustion group was improved,the structure of spleen tissue was improved,the mRNA and protein expressions of T-bet and IFN-γ in spleen tissue were decreased,and the mRNA and protein expressions of GATA3 and IL-4 were increased(P<0.05);the contents of IFN-γ and IL-2 in serum were decreased,and the content of IL-4 was increased(P<0.05).Conclusion Grain-sized moxibustion can significantly improve the immunosuppressive symptoms induced by chemotherapy.The mechanism may be through regulating the expressions of transcription factors T-bet and GATA3,regulating Th1/Th2 balance,and thus restoring the immune balance.

ObjectiveTo observe the effect of acupuncture “Zhibian （BL 54）-to-Shuidao （ST 28）” on the reproductive function of asthenospermia model mice and to explore the possible mechanism. MethodsForty-two male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into blank group， model group， and acupuncture group， with 14 mice in each group. Cyclophosphamide 30 mg/（kg·d） was injected intraperitoneally for 7 days to establish model of asthenospermia for the model group and the acupuncture group， while 0.9% sodium chloride solution 10 ml/（kg·d） was injected intraperitoneally for 7 days in the blank group. After successful modeling， mice in the acupuncture group received acupuncture at “Zhibian （BL 54）-to-Shuidao （ST 28）” once a day for 20 minutes， 6 times a week for 3 weeks； the remaining two groups were fixed without acupuncture. Daily observations were made on the general conditions of mice in all groups， and changes in body weight after intervention were recorded. On the next day after completing the treatment， 6 male mice selected randomly from each group to test the sperm quality as well as testicular and epididymal weights， and calculate the corresponding indices； ELISA was used to test the levels of testosterone （T）， follicle-stimulating hormone （FSH）， and luteinizing hormone （LH） in serum； HE staining and TUNEL staining were performed to observe the pathological morphology and apoptosis of testicular and epididymal tissues； fluorescence quantitative PCR and western blot were used to detect changes in the expression of apoptosis-related factors （Fas）， Fas-associated death domain protein （FADD）， B-cell lymphoma 2 （Bcl-2）， Bcl-2-associated X protein （Bax）， and cysteine-aspartic acid protease （caspase）-3 mRNA and protein in testicular tissue. The remaining 8 male mice in each group were housed with estrus-cycling mice of the same strain at 1∶1 ratio， and the pregnancy rate and number of embryos per litter in each group were determined after mating. ResultsIn comparison with the blank group， mice in the model group exhibited reduced body weight， decreased testicular mass， testicular index， epididymal mass， and epididymal index. Additionally， there was a decrease in total sperm count， sperm motility， and sperm viability. Serum levels of T， FSH， and LH were reduced. The apoptosis rate increased， and the expression levels of Fas， FADD， Bax， and Caspase-3 mRNA and proteins were elevated， while Bcl-2 mRNA and protein expression levels decreased （P＜0.01）. Pathological abnormalities were observed in testicular and epididymal tissues， with disrupted arrangement of seminiferous tubules and a decreased number of spermatogenic cells within the tubular lumen. Furthermore， the pregnancy rate and the number of embryos per litter decreased significantly after mating （P＜0.01）. In comparison with the model group， mice in the acupuncture group showed improvements in testicular mass， testicular index， epididymal mass， epididymal index， total sperm count， sperm motility， and sperm viability. Serum levels of T， FSH， and LH increased. The apoptosis rate decreased， and the expression levels of Fas， FADD， Bax， and Caspase-3 mRNA and proteins decreased， while Bcl-2 mRNA and protein expression levels increased （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Morphological improvements were observed in testicular and epididymal tissues， with a compact arrangement of seminiferous tubules and an increased number of spermatogenic cells within the tubular lumen. Furthermore， the pregnancy rate and the number of embryos per litter increased significantly after mating （P＜0.01）. ConclusionAcupuncture “Zhibian （BL 54）-to-Shuidao （ST 28）” can improve testicular tissue apoptosis and enhance reproductive function in a mouse model of asthenospermia. Its mechanism may be associated with the modulation of key factors in the extrinsic membrane receptor pathway （Fas-mediated pathway） and the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway （Bcl-2/Bax-regulated pathway） in testicular tissue.

ObjectiveTo explore the effect of grain-sized moxibustion at "Zhongwan （RN12）" "Tianshu （ST25）" and "Shangjuxu （ST37）" on the colon tissue of mice with ulcerative colitis （UC）， and to analyze the potential mechanism. MethodsForty C57BL/6 male mice were randomly divided into blank group， model group， moxibustion group and mesalazine group， with 10 mice in each group. In all the groups except for the blank group， UC mouse model was prepared by freely drinking 3% sodium dextran sulfate solution. After successful modeling， the moxibustion group was treated with grain-sized moxibustion at Zhongwan， Tianshu and Shangjuxu ， 3 cones per acupoint， 30 s of each cone. The mesalazine group was given 300 mg/kg of mesalazine enteric-coated tablet solution by gavage. The blank group and the model group were only fixed by grasping without any intervention. Each group was intervened once a day for 7 consecutive days. The general condition of mice in each group was observed， and the disease activity index （DAI） score was evaluated. The colon length， intestinal weight and colon mucosal injury score were detected. The contents of serum intercellular adhesion molecule-1 （ICAM-1）， interleukin-6 （IL-6） and tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α） were detected by ELISA. The pathological changes of colon tissue were observed by HE staining. The mRNA and protein expressions of non-receptor tyrosine protein kinase 2 （JAK2）， signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 （STAT3） and suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 （SOCS3） in colon tissue of mice were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and immunohistochemistry， respectively. The mean fluorescence intensity of JAK2 and SOCS3 in colon tissue of mice was detected by immunofluorescence double staining. ResultsCompared to the blank group， the mice in the model group had unclean perianal area， unformed stool， destroyed colonic mucosal morphology， shortened body weight and colon length， increased DAI score， intestinal weight index， colonic mucosal injury and pathological score， serum ICAM-1， IL-6 and TNF-α levels， increased mRNA and protein expression of JAK2 and STAT3 in colon tissue， and decreased mRNA and protein expression of SOCS3 （P＜0.01）. Compared to those in the model group， the perianal area of mice in the moxibustion group and the mesalazine group was improved， and the colonic mucosal morphology was more complete； body weight and colon length increased， while DAI score， intestinal weight index， colonic mucosal injury and pathological score， serum ICAM-1， IL-6 and TNF-α levels decreased， with decreased mRNA and protein expression of JAK2 and STAT3 in colon tissue， and increased SOCS3 mRNA and protein expression （ P＜0.01 or P＜0.05 ）. There was no significant difference in any index between the moxibustion group and the mesalazine group. ConclusionGrain-sized moxibustion at "Zhongwan"， "Tianshu" and "Shangjuxu" can improve the damage of colon mucosa in UC model mice， and the mechanism may be related to the key factors regulating JAK2 / STAT3 signaling pathway based on SOCS3.

Humans ; Multiple Myeloma ; Nasal Cavity