Mast Cell Degranulation and Adenosine Release:Acupoint Specificity for Effect of Electroacupuncture on Pituitrin-Induced Acute Heart Bradycardia in Rabbits

Acupuncture is a medical modality based on the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, and its effect is relatively dependent on acupoint specificity. However, there is little knowledge on acupoint specificity versus acupuncture outcomes because of the deficiency of rigorous investigation on this topic, which has impeded the growing legitimacy of acupuncture in the mainstream of medicine as an evidence-based therapy. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to clarify this critical issue. The present study aims to verify the phenomenon of acupoint specificity in acupuncture-induced cardiovascular regulation and explore the biological mechanism by measuring mast cells’ degranulation and adenosine release. This study was conducted to explore the specificity of acupoints in an acute bradycardia rabbit model. After electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation at PC6, PC control (con) 1, PC con 2, LU7, LI11, and nonacupoint, only the PC6 group showed a significant improvement in relative heart rate as compared to that of the model group. There was no significant difference between the relative heart rate of other EA groups and that of the model group. Historical results also showed that the ratio of degranulated mast cells in PC6 was significantly higher than other acupoints and control points. From the results of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), a transient elevation of adenosine concentration during EA was only observed on acupoints and control points ( P < 0.05 ) along the pericardium meridian. The EA-induced adjustment on acute bradycardia exhibits a relative specificity of acupoints, which may be related to mast cell degranulation and adenosine release in local acupoint areas. Increased degranulation of mast cells and augmentation of adenosine release during EA may be the mechanisms for PC6 having significantly better acupuncture effects than other acupoints and nonacupoints.