Acupuncture Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Acupuncture, including details on alternative medicine, uses, benefits, treatment, chinese medicine.

Electro-acupuncture improves responsiveness to insulin via excitation of somatic afferent fibers in diabetic rats.

Higashimura Y, Shimoju R, Maruyama H, Kurosawa M

Center for Medical Science, International University of Health and Welfare, Otawara, Tochigi, Japan.

The effects of electro-acupuncture (EA) on plasma concentration of glucose and on responsiveness to insulin were examined in an animal model of diabetes, the streptozotocin-treated rat. Two weeks after treatment with streptozotocin, rats were anesthetized with urethane-chloralose and subjected to the EA for 10 min delivered to the tibialis anterior muscle of one side. The stimulation produced no significant changes in plasma glucose concentration. In contrast, EA increased the response of plasma glucose to insulin (0.2 U kg(-1)). The effect of EA on the responsiveness to insulin was abolished by section of both sciatic and femoral nerves ipsilateral to the side of the EA. These results show that EA in diabetic rats has no effect on plasma glucose concentration while it augments the responsiveness to insulin, and we show that this occurs via a mechanism that involves the somatic afferent nerves.

Published 7 September 2009 in Auton Neurosci, 150(1): 100-3.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2012 Acupuncture Research Today. All Rights Reserved.