Abstract
AbstractAcupuncture at Lianquan (CV23) acupoint has been shown to improve swallowing function in poststroke dysphagia (PSD). This improvement is supposed to be associated with the regulation of neuronal activity in the contralateral primary motor cortex (M1), while the underlying mechanism still needs to be elucidated. Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are well-known to be involved in the regulation of neuronal activity. Thus, we here aimed to detect the role of PNNs in the contralateral M1 hemisphere in the electroacupuncture (EA)-mediated effect in male mice. The results were obtained from a combination of methods, includingin vitroslice electrophysiological recording,in vivoelectrophysiological recording, and immunofluorescent staining in male mice. These results showed a decrease of the excitatory postsynaptic currents (sEPSCs) and no alteration of the inhibitory postsynaptic currents (sIPSCs) in the GABAergic neurons and the tonic inhibition in the excitatory neurons in the contralateral M1 after stroke induction, and EA recovered the impaired sEPSCs in the GABAergic neurons. We further found that the effect of EA-induced increase of c-Fos expression, enhancement of spike firing, potentiation of sEPSCs in the excitatory neurons, and improvement of swallowing function were all blocked by the removal of PNNs in the contralateral M1. In conclusion, the PNNs in the contralateral M1 was suggested to be participated in stroke pathogenesis and might be associated with the EA-mediated swallowing function rehabilitation of PSD in male mice. Our study provides insight into how PNNs might be involved in the mechanism of EA treatment for stroke rehabilitation.
Funder
the National Natural Science Foundation of China
the Fellowship of China postdoctoral Science Foundation
the Special project of “Lingnan modernization of traditional Chinese medicine” in 2019 Guangdong Provincial R & D Program
Discipline Collaborative Innovation Team Program of Double First-class and High-level Universities for Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine
Subject
General Medicine,General Neuroscience