1.Electroacupuncture alleviates hyperalgesia in spared nerve injury mice by regulating sympathetic-sensory coupling
Shiwei WU ; Fei WANG ; Zhicheng TIAN ; Wenguang CHU ; Ceng LUO
Chinese Journal of Neuroanatomy 2024;40(2):203-210
Objective:To observe the effects of electroacupuncture(EA)intervention on norepinephrine(NE)andα2A adrenergic receptors(α2A-R)in the dorsal root ganglion(DRG)of mice with spared nerve injury(SNI).Methods:Male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into sham surgery group(Sham),model group(SNI),negative control EA group(SNI+NC-EA),and EA group(SNI+EA).Mechanical and thermal stimuli were used to measure the paw withdrawal mechanical threshold(PWMT)and paw withdrawal thermal latency(PWTL).Immunofluorescence staining was used to detect the sprouting of sympathetic nerve fibers and the co-localization of α2A-R with large-diameter sensory neurons in mouse DRG.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)kits were used to measure NE levels in mouse serum and DRG,and Western Blot was used to detect tyrosine hydroxylase(TH)and α2A-R expression levels in DRG.Results:After SNI,the PWMT and PWTL were significantly decreased,and after electroacupuncture treatment,PWMT and PWTL were reversed and increased.Immune fluorescence staining showed that sympathetic ganglion sprouting increased in DRG after SNI,and significantly decreased after electroacupuncture;After SNI,NE,α2A-R,and TH in DRG all significantly increased,and their expression decreased after electroacupuncture intervention,but NE in the serum did not change significantly.Conclusion:In the SNI model,electroacupuncture may regulate the sympathetic-sensory coupling by inhibiting the release of NE and the expression of α2A-R in DRG,thereby producing analgesic effects.