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Central mechanism of an extensive analgesic effect due to strong electroacupuncture of acupoint on spinal dorsal horn neurons

He Xiaoling, Liu Xiang, Zhu Bing, Xu Weidong, Zhang Shouxing

Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Beijing 100700

Abstract

Experiments were performed on male rats. The responses of dorsal horn convergent neurons in spinal cord (T12-L1)to noxious stimulation of hind paw were recorded extracellularly with glass microelectrode. When low intensity(2V)electroacupuncture(EA)was used, the nociceptive responses of convergent neurons were inhibited by EA at “Zusanli”near noxious stimulation area, but not at “Xiaguan”far from the area. When intensity (18V)high than the threshold of C fibers EA was applied at the far acupoint “Xiaguan”, obvious analgesic effects on convergent neurons were also produced, showing an extensive analgesic effect of strong EA at acupoint. This extensive analgesic effect was abdicated by lesion of nucleus raphe magnus (NRM), but still persisted to some extent by EA at the same segment acupoint “Zusanli”with 18V or 2V intensity.

Key words: Dorsal horn convergent neurons;Acupoint speificity;Analgesic extensiveness of strong EA at acupoint;Negative feedback mechanism modulating Pain

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Citing This Article：

He Xiaoling, Liu Xiang, Zhu Bing, Xu Weidong, Zhang Shouxing. Central mechanism of an extensive analgesic effect due to strong electroacupuncture of acupoint on spinal dorsal horn neurons. Acta Physiol Sin 1995; 47 (6): (in Chinese with English abstract).