Effect of acupuncture on inflammatory cytokines expression of spastic cerebral palsy rats

Asian Pac J Trop Med. 2014 Jun;7(6):492-5. doi: 10.1016/S1995-7645(14)60081-X.

Abstract

Objective: To To investigate the effect of acupuncture on the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), nitric oxide synthase (NOS) content and muscular tension of spasticity cerebral palsy rat model.

Methods: The rats with spastic cerebral palsy were randomly divided into the control group, model group and acupuncture group. After successful modeling, the muscular tension and the content of TNF-α, IL-6, CRP, NOS were measured.

Results: The serum TNF-α, IL-6, CRP, NOS content were significantly decreased in the acupuncture group (P<0.05). The low and high shear viscosity of whole blood of the acupuncture group were significantly lower than the control group and the model group (P<0.05). The erythrocyte electrophoresis indexes in the acupuncture group were significantly lower than that in the model group and the control group (P<0.05). Acupuncture significantly reduced the muscular tension of spastic cerebral palsy rat and increased the active extent in the paralytic extremity (P<0.05), but it could not be restored to normal level. Compared with the control group, the difference had significant (P<0.05).

Conclusions: Acupuncture treatment can inhibit the release of inflammatory cells after brain injury, then reduce immune injury, relieve muscle spasms and reduce muscular tension.

Keywords: Acupuncture; Inflammatory factors; Muscular tension; Spastic cerebral palsy.

MeSH terms

  • Acupuncture Therapy*
  • Animals
  • Cerebral Palsy / blood*
  • Cerebral Palsy / therapy*
  • Cytokines / blood*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Hemorheology / physiology
  • Male
  • Muscle Tonus / physiology
  • Rats
  • Rats, Wistar

Substances

  • Cytokines