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Abstract #2320

Characterization of the Central Analgesic Effects of Two Different Acupuncture Modalities in a Mouse Model of Nociception

Isabel Wank1,2, Jianliang Zhang3,4, Shuping Chen4, Vanja Nagy3,5, Liqun Zhang6, Silke Kreitz1, Andreas Hess1, and Josef Penninger3

1Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Bayern - Erlangen, Germany, 2Department of Medicine 3 Rheumatology and Immunology, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany, 3Institute of Molecular Biotechnology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria, 4Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China, 5Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria, 6Clinical Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

By using functional MRI, possible analgesic effects of two different acupuncture treatments (insertion of needles and electro-acupuncture) at Zusanli acupoint (ST36) were investigated. The brain’s response in anaesthetized C57Bl/6J mice to noxious stimuli with and without acupuncture was analyzed by characterization of the classical stimulus-driven BOLD parameters but also the influence on stimulus- as well as non-stimulus-driven functional connectivity-based brain networks. Acupuncture was shown to modulate (pseudo-resting state) brain networks by enhancing functional connectivity within limbic structures and decreasing thalamic connectivity particular with electro-acupuncture. Thereby acupuncture exerts control over the processing of noxious stimuli by higher-order brain regions.

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Abstract