Acupuncture at Back-Shu point improves insomnia by reducing inflammation and inhibiting the ERK/NF-κB signaling pathway

Figure 1 Effects of acupuncture at Back-Shu point on sleep latency and sleep duration in rats. ^aP < 0.05, compared to the Con group; ^bP < 0.05, compared to the Model group.

Figure 2 Effects of acupuncture at back-shu point on the behavior of rats. A: Average escape latency of rats; B: Spatial exploration movement trajectories of rats; C: Spatial exploration results of rats. ^aP < 0.05, compared to the Con group; ^bP < 0.05, compared to the Model group.

Figure 3 Acupuncture at Back-Shu point increased secretion of inflammatory cytokines in rats. A-C: Secretion of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in serum; D-F: Secretion of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in rat hippocampus. ^aP < 0.05, compared to the Con group; ^bP < 0.05, compared to the Model group.

Figure 4 Relative mRNA expression levels of RAF-1, MEK-2, ERK1/2 and NF-κB in rat hippocampus. ^aP < 0.05, compared to the Con group; ^bP < 0.05, compared to the Model group.

Figure 5 Acupuncture at Back-Shu point inhibited the ERK/NF-κB signaling pathway in rats. A: The expression of ERK/NF-κB pathway-related proteins in rat hippocampus was detected by western blot; B: The relative protein expression level of RAF-1, MEK-2, ERK1/2 and NF-κB in rat hippocampus; C: The expression levels of ERK/NF-κB pathway-related proteins in the hippocampus in rats were detected by immunohistochemistry, scale bars = 100 μm (× 200); D: The gray values of RAF-1, MEK-2, ERK1/2 and NF-κB. ^aP < 0.05, compared to the Con group; ^bP < 0.05, compared to the Model group.