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Wang N, Ma J, Ma Y, Lu L, Ma C, Qin P, Gao E, Zuo M, Yang J, Yang L. Electroacupuncture Pretreatment Mitigates Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury via XBP1/GRP78/Akt Pathway. Front Cardiovasc Med 2021; 8:629547. [PMID: 34195232 PMCID: PMC8236521 DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2021.629547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2020] [Accepted: 04/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury is a common clinical problem and can result in severe cardiac dysfunction. Previous studies have demonstrated the protection of electroacupuncture against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, the role of X-box binding protein I (XBP1) signaling pathway in the protection of electroacupuncture was still elusive. Thus, we designed this study and demonstrated that electroacupuncture significantly improved cardiac function during myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury and reduced cardiac infarct size. Electroacupuncture treatment further inhibited cardiac injury manifested by the decrease of the activities of serum lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase-MB. The results also revealed that electroacupuncture elevated the expressions of XBP1, glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78), Akt, and Bcl-2 and decreased the Bax and cleaved Caspase 3 expressions. By using the inhibitor of XBP1 in vitro, the results revealed that suppression of XBP1 expression could markedly increase the activities of lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase-MB and cell apoptosis, thus exacerbating stimulated ischemia/reperfusion-induced H9c2 cell injury. Compared with stimulated ischemia/reperfusion group, inhibition of XBP1 inhibited the downstream GRP78 and Akt expressions during stimulated ischemia/reperfusion injury. Collectively, our data demonstrated that electroacupuncture treatment activated XBP1/GRP78/Akt signaling to protect hearts from myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. These findings revealed the underlying mechanisms of electroacupuncture protection against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury and may provide novel therapeutic targets for the clinical treatment of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nisha Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Xi'an Children's Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Jipeng Ma
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Xijing Hospital, Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yan Ma
- Department of Anaesthesiology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Linhe Lu
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Xijing Hospital, Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Chao Ma
- Department of Anesthesiology, Xi'an Children's Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Pei Qin
- Department of Anesthesiology, Xi'an Children's Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
| | - Erhe Gao
- Center for Translational Medicine, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Mingzhang Zuo
- Department of Anaesthesiology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Jian Yang
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Xijing Hospital, Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Lifang Yang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Xi'an Children's Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
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Xin JJ, Dai QF, Lu FY, Zhao YX, Liu Q, Cui JJ, Xu DS, Bai WZ, Jing XH, Gao JH, Yu XC. Antihypertensive and Antifibrosis Effects of Acupuncture at PC6 Acupoints in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats and the Underlying Mechanisms. Front Physiol 2020; 11:734. [PMID: 32982761 PMCID: PMC7480262 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2020.00734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2019] [Accepted: 06/08/2020] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Long-term hypertension can lead to both structural and functional impairments of the myocardium. Reversing left ventricular (LV) myocardial fibrosis has been considered as a key goal for curing chronic hypertension and has been a hot field of research in recent years. The aim of the present work is to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) at PC6 on hypertension-induced myocardial fibrosis in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs). Thirty SHRs were randomized into model, SHR + EA, and SHR + Sham EA groups with WKY rats as a normal control. EA was applied once a day for 8 consecutive weeks. The cardiac fibrosis as well as the underlying mechanisms were investigated. After 8 weeks of EA treatment at PC6, the enhanced myocardial fibrosis in SHRs was characterized by an increased ratio of left ventricular mass index (LVMI), collagen volume fraction (CVF), and elevated content of hydroxyproline (Hyp) as well as the upregulated expression of collagen I and collagen III in myocardium tissue of SHRs. All these abnormal alterations in the SHR + EA group were significantly lower compared to the model group. In addition, EA at PC6 significantly improved the pathological changes of myocardial morphology. Meanwhile, the increased levels of angiotensin II (Ang II) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) and expression of transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1), connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, and MMP-9 in the serum or heart tissue of SHRs were also markedly diminished by EA. These results suggest that EA at bilateral PC6 could ameliorate cardiac fibrosis in SHRs, which might be mediated by the regulation of the Ang II – TGF-β1 pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan-Juan Xin
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qiu-Fu Dai
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Feng-Yan Lu
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yu-Xue Zhao
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qun Liu
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jing-Jing Cui
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Dong-Sheng Xu
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wan-Zhu Bai
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiang-Hong Jing
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jun-Hong Gao
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Chun Yu
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
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Cardioprotective Effect of Electroacupuncture Pretreatment on Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury via Antiapoptotic Signaling. EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 2016; 2016:4609784. [PMID: 27313648 PMCID: PMC4897718 DOI: 10.1155/2016/4609784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2016] [Accepted: 05/03/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Objectives. Our previous study has used RNA-seq technology to show that apoptotic molecules were involved in the myocardial protection of electroacupuncture pretreatment (EAP) on the ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) animal model. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate how EAP protects myocardium against myocardial I/R injury through antiapoptotic mechanism. Methods. By using rats with myocardial I/R, we ligated the left anterior descending artery (LAD) for 30 minutes followed by 4 hr of reperfusion after EAP at the Neiguan (PC6) acupoint for 12 days; we employed arrhythmia scores, serum myocardial enzymes, and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) to evaluate the cardioprotective effect. Heart tissues were harvested for western blot analyses for the expressions of pro- and antiapoptotic signaling molecules. Results. Our preliminary findings showed that EAP increased the survival of the animals along with declined arrhythmia scores and decreased CK, LDH, CK-Mb, and cTnT levels. Further analyses with the heart tissues detected reduced myocardial fiber damage, decreased number of apoptotic cells and the protein expressions of Cyt c and cleaved caspase 3, and the elevated level of Endo G and AIF after EAP intervention. At the same time, the protein expressions of antiapoptotic molecules, including Xiap, BclxL, and Bcl2, were obviously increased. Conclusions. The present study suggested that EAP protected the myocardium from I/R injury at least partially through the activation of endogenous antiapoptotic signaling.
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ERK1/2-Egr-1 Signaling Pathway-Mediated Protective Effects of Electroacupuncture in a Mouse Model of Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion. EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 2014; 2014:253075. [PMID: 24883066 PMCID: PMC4026842 DOI: 10.1155/2014/253075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2014] [Accepted: 04/10/2014] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Early growth response- (Egr-) 1 is an upstream master switch in controlling inflammatory responses following myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R). Activation of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase-1 and kinase-2 (ERK1/2) signaling is known to upregulate Egr-1. ERK1/2 pathway has been previously shown to mediate the therapeutic action of electroacupucture (EA). Thus, we hypothesized that EA would reduce myocardial I/R injury and inflammatory responses through inhibiting Egr-1 expression via the ERK1/2 pathway. Mice were pretreated with EA, U0126, or combination of EA and U0126 and then underwent 1 h myocardial ischemia and 3 h reperfusion. We investigated that EA significantly attenuated the I/R-induced upregulation of both Egr-1 and phosporylated-ERK1/2 (p-ERK1/2), decreased myocardial inflammatory cytokines including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and reduced the infarct size and the release of cardiac troponin I (cTnI). U0126 treatment also exhibited the same effect as EA on Egr-1 level and subsequent cardioprotective effects. There was no additive effect of cotreatment with EA and U0126 on the expression of Egr-1 and its downstream target genes (TNF-α, IL-1β) or serum cTnI level. Collectively, these observations suggested that EA attenuates myocardial I/R injury, possibly through inhibiting the ERK1/2-Egr-1 signaling pathway and reducing the release of proinflammatory cytokines.
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Yang L, Yue N, Zhu X, Han Q, Liu Q, Yu J, Wu G. Electroacupuncture upregulates ERK signaling pathways and promotes adult hippocampal neural progenitors proliferation in a rat model of depression. Altern Ther Health Med 2013; 13:288. [PMID: 24165147 PMCID: PMC3813990 DOI: 10.1186/1472-6882-13-288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2013] [Accepted: 10/23/2013] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Background In this study, we investigate the proliferation of adult neural stem cells (NSCs) in a chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) rat model of depression, the effects of electroacupunture (EA) on depressive-like symptoms and the corresponding signaling pathways. Methods SD rats were subjected to 4 weeks of CUS to induce depressive-like behaviors. EA was performed at the Du-20 (Bai-Hui) and GB-34 (Yang-Ling-Quan) acupoints. Rats were injected with BrdU and the brains were cut into sections. Double-labeling with BrdU/Sox2 and p-ERK/Nestin was performed to demonstrate the in vivo proliferation of adult NSCs in hippocampus and ERK activation in NSCs. Hippocampal microdialysates of different groups were collected to observe the in vitro effects on NSCs. Results After 8 treatments, EA generated a clear antidepressant effect on the stressed rats and promoted the NSC proliferation. ERK activation might be involved in the antidepressant-like effects of EA treatment. Hippocampal microdialysates from EA-treated stressed rats influenced NSCs to form larger neural spheres and exhibit higher p-ERK level in vitro, compared to the untreated stressed rats. Meanwhile, the antidepressant-like effects of EA involved contribution from both acupoint specificity and electrical stimulus. Conclusions EA might interfere with the hippocampal microenvironment and enhance the activation of ERK signaling pathways. This could mediate, at least in part, the beneficial effects of EA on NSC proliferation and depressive-like behaviors.
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