Acupuncture Regulates NF-?B Pathway Inhibits Retinal Microglia Activity And Mechanisms

Objective: Apoptosis of photoreceptor cells is the key pathogenic basis of retinal degenerative diseases.Retinal microglial cells are an important mechanism for apoptosis of photoreceptor cells.Apoptosis model of rat retinal photoreceptor cells induced by MNU was established to explore the exact effect of acupuncture on inhibiting the apoptosis of photoreceptor cells by retinal microglial cells,and to regulate the activation of retinal microglial cells by regulating NF-?B signaling pathway.The key mechanism to explore the role of acupuncture in preventing and treating retinal degenerative diseases.Methods:Apoptosis model of retinal photoreceptor cells was established by intraperitoneal injection of MNU into rats,which were divided into normal group,model group,vitamin A group,acupuncture group and treated continuously for 14 days.HE staining was used to observe the changes of retinal tissue morphology and retinal 0NL thickness;TUNEL method was used to detect the apoptosis of photoreceptor cells;immunofluorescence was used to detect the expression of retinal microglia OX-42 in the retina;ELISA was used to determine retinal IL-1beta.The content of TNF-? and the expression of NF-?B P65 and I?B? in the retina were detected by Western blot.Results:1.HE staining was used to observe the inside and outside of the photoreceptor cells,edema of the cells,loose and disordered arrangement,swelling of the nuclei,and thinning of the 0NL thickness of the retina.2.(1)HE staining showed that compared with the normal group,the thickness of the retinal ONL in each group became thin and the photoreceptor cell structure was disordered;compared with the model group,the retinal ONL thickness in the V-A group and the acupuncture group increased,and a certain amount of photoreceptor cells remained.(2)Tunel staining showed that compared with the normal group,the average optical density of each group increased(P<0.01),suggesting that photoreceptor cells had apoptosis;compared with the model group,the average optical density decreased after the intervention of dimension A and acupuncture.Statistical significance(P<0.05-0.01);The average optical density in the acupuncture group was lower than that in the group A(P<0.05),suggesting that the effect of acupuncture to reduce photoreceptor cells was better than that of vitamin A.(3)The detection of retinal microglia OX-42 showed that compared with the normal group,the mean optical density of OX-42(+)increased in all groups(P<0.05),suggesting the migration and activation of retinal microglial cells;compared with the model group,The average optical density of OX-42(+)decreased in group A and acupuncture group(P<0.05),suggesting a decrease in microglia migration and activation;the average optical density of acupuncture group was lower than that of group A(P<0.05).It is suggested that the effect of acupuncture on the migration and activation of microglia is better than that of group A.(4)The levels of IL-1? and TNF-? showed that the levels of IL-1? and TNF-? were up-regulated in all groups compared with the normal group(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,IL-1? was treated with vitamin A and acupuncture.The content of TNF-? was decreased(P<0.05).Compared with acupuncture,the ability of vitamin A to reduce the content of IL-1? and TNF-? was weak(P<0.05).(5)The expression of NF-?B P65 and I?B? protein showed that the level of NF-?B p65 protein in the nucleus of each group was higher than that of the normal group(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the expression level of NF-?B P65 protein in the nucleus of the acupunctured group was decreased.(P<0.05),the down-regulation of NF-?B P65 protein expression in the nucleus of Vitamin A group was not significant(P>0.05).Compared with the normal group,the expression of I?B? protein in the cytoplasm of each group was decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the expression of I?B? protein in the acupuncture group was increased(P<0.05),and the expression of I?B? protein in the vitamin A group was not significantly increased.(P>0.05).Conclusion:Acupuncture can regulate the activity of NF-?B pathway to inhibit the migration and activation of microglia into retinal ONL,and at the same time reduce the release of retinal IL-1? and TNF-?,thus preventing photoreceptor apoptosis from playing a role in preventing and treating retinal degenerative diseases.