Chinese Med J Peking
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Chinese Med J Peking · May 2010
Effect of pre-electroacupuncture on p38 and c-Fos expression in the spinal dorsal horn of rats suffering from visceral pain.
Acupuncture is an effective way to relieve pain, but the mechanism by which electroacupuncture (EA) decreases the visceral pain state still remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of pre-electroacupuncture on pain behaviors, p38 phosphorylation, and c-Fos protein and mRNA expression in both the colonic wall and spinal dorsal horn of rats suffering from visceral pain. This study also investigated the probable signaling regulatory mechanism of the analgesic effect induced by electroacupuncture. ⋯ Pre-electroacupuncture of the Jiaji acupoint has prophylactic analgesic effects on rats suffering from visceral pain. The p38 signal transduction pathway may be partly involved in the regulatory mechanism of this analgesic effect.