Acupuncture modulates development of myopia by reducing NLRP3 inflammasome activation via the dopamine-D1R signaling pathway.

Background: Dopamine has been suggested to be a stop signal for eye growth and affects the development of myopia. Acupuncture is known to increase dopamine secretion and is widely used to treat myopia clinically.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine if acupuncture inhibits myopia progression in form deprived Syrian hamsters by inducing rises in dopamine content that in turn suppress inflammasome activation.