ArticlePurinergic signalling2026
Acupuncture alleviates postoperative hemorrhoid pain by modulating the P2X7/ERK pathway.
Article in Purinergic signalling, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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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.
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1 citing paper in PubMed.
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9 authors.
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Abstract
Postoperative pain following hemorrhoid surgery is often accompanied by emotional and cognitive disturbances, complicating recovery. Acupuncture has shown promise in modulating pain and related neuroinflammatory pathways. A rat model of mixed hemorrhoid surgery was established in seventy male Sprague-Dawley rats, and randomly divided into seven groups: control, model, acupuncture, non-acupoint acupuncture, P2X7 agonist (BzATP), normal saline, and acupuncture + agonist. Behavioral assays including open field, sucrose preference, and Von Frey tests evaluated motor activity, anhedonia, and mechanical pain threshold. ELISA measured IL-6 and TNF-α levels. ATP concentration was assessed by colorimetric assay. RT-qPCR quantified P2X7 mRNA expression. Western blot and immunohistochemistry assessed P2X7 and p-ERK protein expression in dorsal root ganglia (DRG). P2X7 antagonist A-438079 was also used to validate the involvement of P2X7 in acupuncture-mediated effects. Mind-regulating and pain-relieving acupuncture significantly improved locomotion, sucrose preference, and pain threshold compared to the model group (P < 0.01), while non-acupoint and agonist treatments showed no significant benefits. Acupuncture increased ATP levels and decreased IL-6 and TNF-α levels in DRG tissues (P < 0.01). P2X7 and p-ERK expression were elevated in the model group and suppressed following acupuncture, as confirmed by qPCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry. The P2X7 agonist reversed many of acupuncture's beneficial effects, indicating a role of the P2X7/ERK signaling pathway. Notably, co-administration of the P2X7 selective antagonist A-438079 counteracted the detrimental effects of BzATP and restored behavioral and biochemical outcomes to acupuncture-treated levels. Mind-regulating and pain-relieving acupuncture alleviates postoperative pain and reduces depressive-like behavior and locomotor impairments in a rat model of mixed hemorrhoids, likely through suppression of peripheral P2X7/ERK signaling and inflammation. These findings highlight P2X7 as a therapeutic target in postoperative pain and underscore the translational relevance of P2X receptors.
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