Acupotomy Alleviates Energy Crisis at Rat Myofascial Trigger Points

Yi Zhang; Ning-Yu Du; Chen Chen; Tong Wang; Li-Juan Wang; Xiao-Lu Shi; Shu-Ming Li; Chang-Qing Guo

doi:10.1155/2020/5129562

Acupotomy Alleviates Energy Crisis at Rat Myofascial Trigger Points

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2020 Feb 28:2020:5129562. doi: 10.1155/2020/5129562. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Yi Zhang¹, Ning-Yu Du², Chen Chen¹, Tong Wang¹, Li-Juan Wang¹, Xiao-Lu Shi³, Shu-Ming Li⁴, Chang-Qing Guo¹

Affiliations

¹ School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100029, China.
² Center for Early Childhood Development, Shijiazhuang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Shijiazhuang 050051, China.
³ Beijing Key Laboratory of TCM Basic Research on Prevention and Treatment of Major Disease, Experimental Research Center, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China.
⁴ Department of Pain Medicine, Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100010, China.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of acupotomy on energy crises in rat trigger points (TrPs) by measuring mechanical pain thresholds (MPTs) and levels of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), free sarcoplasmic calcium (Ca²⁺), adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP), adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP), substance P (SP), and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in rat muscle TrP tissue. Male Sprague Dawley rats (n = 32) were randomly divided into four groups: control, TrP, acupotomy, and lidocaine injection. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to measure AChE, and free sarcoplasmic Ca²⁺ concentrations were determined by fluorescent staining with Fura-2 AM; high-performance liquid chromatography was used to measure ATP and AMP, and SP and CGRP were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Compared with the control group, free sarcoplasmic Ca²⁺, AMP, SP, and CGRP were higher in the model group, while MPT, AChE, and ATP were lower. Treatment with acupotomy or lidocaine injection reduced free sarcoplasmic Ca²⁺, SP, and CGRP and increased MPTs and AChE levels compared with the model group. However, only acupotomy also led to decreased AMP and increased ATP levels relative to the model group. We conclude that acupotomy can alleviate energy crises at TrPs.