Low Frequency Electroacupuncture Decreasing p-CREB Expression in Dorsal Root Ganglia of Rats with Neuropathological Pain

Objective: to observe the effect of pulse electroacupuncture with low frequency on p-CREB expression in dorsal root ganglia of rats with chronic neuropathological pain.Methods: 36 SD rats were randomly divided into control group,sham operation group,model group and electroacupuncture group.Model group and electroacupuncture group were made by chronic sciatic nerve ligation on right side.The electroacupuncture group were given low frequency stimulation in bilateral Jiaji(EX-B 2) and Zusanli(ST 36) with wave width 0.6 ms,frequency 2 Hz,current strength 0.5 mA,1 mA and 2 mA for 10 minutes each and totally 30 minutes,while the other were caught and fixed without any treatment.Immunoblotting was employed to observe the p-CREB expression changes in dorsal root ganglia L4-6.Results: thermalgia threshold of model group was obviously lower than control group,accompanied with p-CREB significantly increasing(P0.01).Thermalgia threshold and p-CREB expression of treatment group were significantly different from those of control group(P0.05).Conclusion: low frequency pulse electroacupuncture can relieve pain partly by inhibiting p-CREB expression,and regulate pain by changing the genetic expression in primary afferent neurons.