Experimental Studies On Therapeutic Effect Of Acupuncture And Moxibustion On The Rabbit Models Of Osteoarthritis

Purpose: To study the influence of acupuncture and moxibustion therapy on osteoarthritis of knees in rabbits.Methods: The tibial collateral ligament, anterior cruciate ligament, posterior cruciate ligament and medial meniscus of the left knee in 12 adult New Zealand rabbits were sectioned to produce model of OA; the animals were then randomly divided into test-group and model-group. Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy were given to the animals in the test group for 6 weeks after surgery. Then the animals were sacrificed respectively and specimens were produced from the medial femoral condyle for light microscopic, transmission electron microscopic. Immunohistochemical method was used to detect the MMP-3 in articular cartilage. In situ end labbelling method was used to detect the apoptosis of chondrocytes in articular cartilage.Results:(l)The degenerative changes of cartilage in test group were less than model group.(2)The MMP-3 positive cell ratio in test group were less than model group(P<0.01).(3) Apoptosis cell ratio of chondrocytes in test group were less than model group(P<0.01).Conclusion:(1) The operation on tibial collateral ligament ,anterior cruciate ligament, posterior cruciate ligament and medial meniscus in the left knees in rabbits can produce model of OA; (2)The study indicated that acupuncture and moxibustion can effectively treat OA by delaying degeneration of in articular cartilage; (3) The study indicated that acupuncture and moxibustion can decrease the apoptosis of chondrocytes and the expression of MMP-3, which may be an important mechanism to treat OA.