Regulating Effect Of Acupuncture On Autophagy By Stimulating At Zusanli(ST36) Acupoint

Zusanli(ST36)acupoint,as one of the important acupoints of stomach meridian of foot-yangming,has already been recorded and described in Huangdi's Internal Classics.It has been applied in the clinical treatment and health care as it can regulate the spleen and stomach function through stomach meridian of foot-yangming.According to the modern research,needling this acupoint will produce such effect as analgesia,anti-inflammation,and adjustment of lipid metabolism,but no systematic and comprehensive elaboration can be found in the ancient and modern researches.In this study,we aimed to summarize the researches about zusanli acupoint and attempted to investigate the regulating effect of acupuncture on autophagy through animal experiments.In the first part,we elaborated the treatment effect and health care significance of Zusanli(ST36)on human body combined with relevant theory of Huangdi's Internal Classics,including the position of Zusanli on the stomach meridian,relations between spleen meridian and stomach meridian,balance of qi and blood in spleen,stomach and other internal organs.In theory of traditional Chinese medicine,Zusanli belongs to stomach meridian of foot-yangming and closely related to spleen meridian.Owing to spleen and stomach are the acquired foundation,the function of spleen and stomach can directly affect the function of other organs.Acupuncture can enhance the function of spleen and stomach by stimulating on Zusanli and further strengthen whole body function.In the second part,the recent studies on the acupuncture mechanism were conducted as well as the mechanism of acupuncture treatment by stimulating Zusanli(ST36)acupoint.Animal experiments were designed to investigate the regulating effect of acupuncture on autophagic level and relevant pathway in different organs(e.g.heart,muscle,liver,brain).Results showed that stimulating Zusanli(ST36)acupoint by needle can significantly up-regulate the autophagic level of heart,muscle and liver.Furthermore,such regulating effect does not rely on m-TOR,but induce autophagy by up-regulating AMPK level.In the meantime,the aged mice were applied to observe the effect of needling Zusanli(ST36)on autophagic level,motor ability and hair.It has been found that electro-acupuncture can regulate autophagy pathway,promote hair growth and improve motor ability of aged mice.In summary,we have conducted systematic explanation on the position of acupoint,effect and modern mechanism of Zusanli(ST36)from ancient medical classics to modern literature research.Furthermore,the autophagy has revealed the molecular mechanism of needling Zusanli,providing new perspect to the research of autophagy-related disease.