Effect of Electroacupuncture Therapy on the Expression of Neurotrophic Factor and Receptors in Hippocampus of the Alzheimerian Rats

Objective:To investigate the influence of electroacupuncture therapy on the expession of neurotrophic factor and their receptors,explore the mechanism of electroacupuncture in treatment of Alzheimer's disease.Methods: Forty Wistar rats were randomly divided into 4 groups:a normal group,a sham-operation group,a model group and a electroacupuncture group.AD rats were induced by injecting β-Amyloid 25-35(Aβ25-35) into the double hippocampus.Fengfu point was acupunctured in electroacupuncture group,A behavioral examination was made by Morris Water-Maze.Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of thehippocampus BDNF、TrkB、GDNF and GFR-α1.Results:The number of BDNF、TrkB、GDNF and GFR-α1 postive cells in hippocampus of model group were significantly lower than that of normal group(P0.05),the number of BDNF、TrkB、GDNF and GFR-α1 postive cells in hippocampus of electroacupuncture group were significantly higher than that of model group(P0.01).Conclusion: Electroacupuncture therapy in Fengfu point can increase the expression of BDNF、TrkB、GDNF and GFR-α1 in hippocampus of the Alzheimerian rats,and protect cholinergic neurons from injure.