Introduction: Electroacupuncture (EA) has a favorable impact on blood glucose stability. Blood glucose homeostasis is linked to sexual dimorphism. The majority of research has, however, focused on male participants, and sex differences have not been adequately taken into account.
Methods: Here, we investigated how EA intervention affected pancreatic metabolic stress and explored if there were any sex-related changes in the maintenance of pancreatic function following intraperitoneal injection of a 10 g/kg glucose solution.
Results: The transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-β cell pathway of the male pancreas is vital to maintain glucose metabolism in mice. In contrast, there is a sex bias in TRPV1, which implies that female mice have additional routes for preserving glucose homeostasis. EA is ineffective on Trpv1-/- male mice. It also revealed that TRPV1 in male mice served as a crucial mediator for the EA control of blood glucose. Meanwhile, the sympathetic marker tyrosine hydroxylase showed higher expression in the male pancreas, while the cholinergic marker choline acetyltransferase is expressed predominantly in female mice. Injecting γ-aminobutyric acid into the paraventricular nucleus of male mice caused a disruption in blood glucose and a lack of response to EA. It verified that male mice had a more pronounced sympathetic innervation of the pancreas than female mice.
Conclusion: Our research has demonstrated that the TRPV1 sensory afferent nerve and sympathetic efferent nerve are capable of maintaining glucose homeostasis, exhibiting a distinct sexual dimorphism. Furthermore, this regulation is contingent on the EA effect.
Keywords: Hyperglycemia; Sensory nerve; Sex difference; Sympathetic nerve; Transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 receptor.
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