Molecular changes in remote tissues induced by electro-acupuncture stimulation at acupoint ST36.

To investigate the effects of electro-acupuncture (EA) treatment on regions remote from the application, we measured cellular, enzymatic, and transcriptional activities in various internal tissues of healthy rats. The EA was applied to the well-identified acupoint ST36 of the leg. After application, we measured the activity of natural killer cells in the spleen, gene expression in the hypothalamus, and the activities of antioxidative enzymes in the hypothalamus, liver and red blood cells.

The difference in mRNA expressions of hypothalamic CCK and CCK-A and -B receptors between responder and non-responder rats to high frequency electroacupuncture analgesia.

The present study was performed to determine whether the expression levels of the hypothalamic cholecystokinin (CCK) and its receptors are associated with the responsiveness to high frequency electroacupuncture (EA) analgesia in rats. EA stimulation (100 Hz, 0.5 ms pulse width, 0.