FMRI Study On The Brain Effect Mechanism Of Acupuncture At Yanglingquan Point In Healthy People

Objective:To observe the acupuncture state of Yanglingquan point and its non-acupoint brain activation area based on BOLD-f MRI,and to explore the distribution characteristics of Yanglingquan point activated brain area and its relationship with clinical diseases.Comparison of post-resting compared to pre-resting state local consistency(Re Ho)indexes of acupuncture at Yanglingquan acupoint to explore the central mechanism of the sustained effect of acupuncture acupoints.Methods:In this study,17 healthy right-handed volunteers were included as subjects.Using Philips 3.0T dual-source dual-gradient magnetic resonance scanner,the right Yanglingquan point and corresponding non-acupoints were needled respectively,and the data of f MRI in anterior resting state,acupuncture state and posterior resting state were collected.Based on MATLAB 2017 a,the image data were post-processed and statistically analyzed by DPASFA,XJVIEW,SPM12 and other software packages,and the location,voxel value,activation intensity and Re Ho index changes before and after acupuncture of Yanglingquan point and corresponding non-acupoint specific activated brain regions were obtained.Results:1.Acupuncture Yanglingquan point activates brain areas: positive activation areas include the left precuneus,left infratemporal gyrus,right cerebellum,right inferior occipital gyrus(BA17),right precentral gyrus(BA6),right middle frontal gyrus,and bilateral superior parietal gyrus;negative activation areas include the right caudate nucleus and right middle occipital gyrus.2.Acupuncture of the Yanglingquan acupoint was compared with corresponding non-acupuncture differential brain activation areas: positive activation areas included the right caudate nucleus,right insula,left upper postcentral gyrus,right cingulate gyrus(BA31),and right precentral gyrus(BA6);negative activation areas included the left inferior temporal gyrus,right cerebellum,and right postcentral gyrus(BA4).3.Compared with the resting state before acupuncture,the resting state Re Ho values after acupuncture at Yanglingquan acupuncture point changed brain areas: increased brain areas included the left ducullus,left middle frontal gyrus,left precuneus,left precentral gyrus(BA6),and bilateral medial and paracuneus gyrus;decreased brain areas included left middle temporal gyrus,left middle occipital gyrus(BA18),left middle temporal gyrus(BA39),left postcentral gyrus(BA4),and left supplementary gyrus(BA6).The left central posterior gyrus(BA4),the left supplementary motor area,and the right postcentral gyrus(BA6).Conclusion:1.Acupuncture of the Yanglingquan acupoint caused activation of several brain regions,including the cerebellum,anterior and posterior central gyrus,caudate nucleus,frontal lobe,and occipital lobe,and the above brain regions are mainly associated with the motor cortex,default network,and executive control network of the brain,suggesting that clinical acupuncture of the Yanglingquan acupoint can treat stroke hemiplegia,paralysis,impotence,and other movement disorders,which may be related to activation of the above specific brain regions.2.Compared with the corresponding non-acupuncture points,most of the brain areas activated by acupuncture at Yanglingquan point belonged to the motor area,executive control network,and limbic system,which were significantly correlated with the clinical main effects of Yanglingquan point,confirming the acupoint characteristics in acupuncture theory.3.Compared with the resting state before acupuncture,the resting state Re Ho values changed significantly in the motor cortex and sensory areas after acupuncture at Yanglingquan point,indicating that the activation effect still existed after acupuncture at this point,and that clinical regulation of human motor and sensory functions could be sustained,suggesting that acupuncture has an after-effect.