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| Exploring the analgesic mechanism of acupoint pressure at Chengshan（BL57）on CCD rats via modulating spinal glial cell activity based on the TRPV4/NF-κB signaling pathway |
| Hits 118 Download times 25 Received:October 20, 2025 |
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| DOI
10.11656/j.issn.1673-9043.2026.03.09 |
| Key Words
neuropathic pain;acupoint pressure technique;Chengshan（BL57） acupoint;TRPV4/NF-κB pathway;glial cells;chronic compression of dorsal root ganglion |
| Author Name | Affiliation | E-mail | | CHEN Bole | First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China
Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China | | | WANG Haiteng | First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China
The Third Level Laboratory of Biological Effects of Tuina Techniques, National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China | | | LI Yutong | First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China
Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China | | | LI Jinshuai | First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China
Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 301617, China | | | FANG Wei | First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China
The Third Level Laboratory of Biological Effects of Tuina Techniques, National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin 300193, China | 15122910249@163.com |
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| Abstract
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| [Objective] To investigate whether acupoint pressure at Chengshan（BL57） alleviates neuropathic pain in chronic compression of dorsal root ganglion（CCD） model rats by modulating the transient receptor potential vanilloid 4（TRPV4）/nuclear factor kappa B（NF-κB） signaling pathway and inhibiting the activation of spinal dorsal horn glial cells. [Methods] Thirty-six Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a blank control group，a CCD model group，and an acupoint pressure group（n=12 per group）. The CCD model was established at the L4/L5 level in the model and acupoint pressure groups. Starting from the 4th day post-surgery，rats in the acupoint pressure group received 15 minutes of acupoint pressure at the ipsilateral Chengshan（BL57） acupoint daily for 14 consecutive days. The paw withdrawal latencies and mechanical paw withdrawal threshold were measured before modeling and on days 7，11，and 18 after intervention. Additionally，the protein expression levels of TRPV4 and NF-κB were evaluated through Western blot analysis in the cells. Immunofluorescence staining was used to observe the expression and morphological changes of the microglial marker Iba1 and the astrocytic marker GFAP. The levels of interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α in spinal cord tissue were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. [Results] Compared with the blank control group，the CCD model group showed significantly decreased thermal and mechanical pain thresholds（P<0.01），along with significantly increased protein expression of TRPV4，NF-κB p65，Iba1，and GFAP，as well as elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines in the spinal dorsal horn（P<0.01）. Compared with the model group，after 7 days of intervention，the acupoint pressure group exhibited a significantly increased mechanical pain threshold（P<0.01） and decreased expression of Iba1，GFAP，and inflammatory factors（P<0.05 or P<0.01），while no significant changes were observed in the thermal pain threshold or the expression of TRPV4 and NF-κB p65（P>0.05）. After 11 and 18 days of intervention，both thermal and mechanical pain thresholds were significantly recovered（P<0.05 or P<0.01），and the protein expression of TRPV4，NF-κB p65，Iba1，GFAP，and the levels of inflammatory cytokines in the spinal cord showed a time-dependent significant decrease（P<0.05 or P<0.01）. [Conclusion] Acupoint pressure at Chengshan（BL57） can effectively alleviate neuropathic pain in CCD rats. The analgesic mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the TRPV4/NF-κB signaling pathway in the spinal dorsal horn，thereby suppressing the overactivation of microglia and astrocytes and the associated neuroinflammation. Within the 14-day intervention period，the analgesic effect was enhanced with prolonged intervention time. |
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