Electroacupuncture at Bilateral ST36 Acupoints: Inducing the Hypoglycemic Effect through Enhancing Insulin Signal Proteins in a Streptozotocin-Induced Rat Model during Isoflurane Anesthesia

In this study, twenty-six healthy male Wistar rats, weighing 250-350 g and aged 8-10 weeks were tested. Rats in the experimental electroacupuncture (EA) group (n = 13) received 15 Hz electrical stimulation at bilateral ST 36 acupoints for 30 and 60 minutes. Rats in the control group (n = 13) were handled but not subjected to the stimulation treatment. In both IDDM and normal Wistar rats, we observed a negative change in plasma glucose levels when rats were given the EA treatment, but a positive change in plasma glucose without EA treatment relative to baseline. Within the IDDM group, a negative change in FFA levels was observed when rats were given the EA treatment, while a positive change in the FFA level was shown without the EA treatment. In the expressed protein signals, we found a significant elevation in both GLUT4 and IRS-1 proteins in the IDDM group treated by EA. Moreover, we found a significant mean difference between GLUT4 and IRS-1 protein expression levels relative to β-actin. Our findings suggested that EA at bilateral ST36 acupoints could serve as an effective strategy for lowering plasma glucose by decreasing free fatty acid levels and improving the expression of IRS-1 and GLUT4 proteins in a STZ-IDDM rat model during isoflurane anesthesia.PMID:34659435 | PMC:PMC8514912 | DOI:10.1155/2021/5852599
Source: Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Category: Complementary Medicine Authors: Source Type: research