Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40150822›Full record

ArticleCNS neuroscience & therapeutics2025

Electroacupuncture Regulates Sympathetic Nerve Through the NTS

Wen Chen, Xin Ma, Yi-Ming Fu, Cun-Zhi Liu, Hong-Ping Li, Guang-Xia Shi

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in CNS neuroscience & therapeutics, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Electroacupuncture-based vagal stimulation attenuates epileptic seizures through a body-brain circuit.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Wen ChenInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.ORCID 0000-0003-3592-7247
Xin MaInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Yi-Ming FuInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Cun-Zhi LiuInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Hong-Ping LiInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Guang-Xia ShiInternational Acupuncture and Moxibustion Innovation Institute, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

Funding

National Key Research and Development Program of China 2019YFC1712104National Natural Science Foundation of China 82104648
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimPatients suffering from neuropathic pain often experience sympathetic dysfunction. Acupuncture has shown promise in alleviating pain and modulating the activity of the autonomic nervous system. This study aims to explore the potential mechanism through which electroacupuncture (EA) modulates sympathetic nerves to alleviate neuropathic pain.

methodsSpared nerve injury (SNI) was utilized to induce neuropathic pain. EA was administered at acupoints Huantiao and Yanglingquan for 30 min every other day after SNI. Pain behavior was evaluated using paw withdrawal thresholds (PWTs) and spontaneous pain scores. Various techniques including immunofluorescence, viral tracing, electrophysiology, and chemogenetic manipulations were employed to investigate the impact of EA on the sympathetic nerves and pain behaviors, specifically through the nucleus tractus solitarii (NTS)

resultsIn SNI rats, EA alleviated both mechanical and spontaneous pain, diminished sympathetic nerve excitability, and inhibited sympathetic nerve sprouting within the dorsal root ganglia (DRG), reduced the excitability of glutamatergic neurons in the NTS which project to the RVLM. Chemogenetic inhibition of the NTS

conclusionsThis study suggested that EA alleviates spontaneous pain rather than mechanical pain by regulating the sympathetic nerve activity via the NTS

Indexed as

ElectroacupunctureMedulla OblongataNeuralgiaSolitary NucleusSympathetic Nervous SystemAnimalsDisease Models, AnimalGanglia, SpinalGlutamic AcidMaleNeural PathwaysPain MeasurementPain ThresholdRatsRats, Sprague-DawleyGlutamic Acidelectroacupuncturemechanical painneuropathic painnucleus tractus solitariirostral ventrolateral medullaspontaneous painsympathetic nerve

Identifiers

PMID40150822
PMCPMC11949842

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.