| OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of acupoint plastering with Functional Constipation (FC) rats based on VIP-cAMP-PKA-AQP3 pathway. METHODS: Forty SD-grade rats were selected and divided into blank group (8 rats) and modeling group (32 rats), and then randomly divided into mosapride group, acupoint dressing group, model group and non-acupuncture dressing group after the completion of modeling. Loperamide hydrochloride and hydrocortisone were used to model FC rats with spleen-kidney yang deficiency in all groups except the blank group, which was kept normally without any treatment. After successful modeling, the mosapride group was gavaged with mosapride + babbling agent matrix acupressure, the rest of the groups were gavaged with saline, the model group was applied with acupressure without drugs, the acupressure group was applied with ulcerated junction paste at acupressure points, and the non-acupressure group was applied with ulcerated junction paste at the muscle-rich places of the hind limbs, for 14 consecutive d. The vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) content of the serum of the rats was measured by the Elisa assay, and HE staining was used for the observation of the mucosa of colonic tissues. Elisa method was used to determine the content of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) in the serum of rats, HE staining to observe the mucous membrane of colon tissues, and real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR to detect the expression of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and protein kinase A (PKA) mRNA in colon tissues. RESULTS: Compared with the blank group, the time of the first black stool in the model group was significantly increased (P<0.05), and the water content of feces was decreased (P<0.05); whereas, compared with the model group, the time of the first black stool in the acupressure group and the mosapride group, the content of VIP in serum, cAMP, PKA, and AQP3 in the colonic tissues of the rats were all significantly elevated (P<0.05), and the water content was obviously increased (P< 0.05), while no obvious abnormality was seen between the acupoint paste group and the mosapride group (P>0.05). The ulcerative knot Ning cream could significantly improve the damage of intestinal pathomorphology in rats with loperamide-induced constipation. CONCLUSION: The acupoint application of ulcerative knot-forming cream can increase the expression of VIP in serum, regulate AQP3 through cAMP-PKA pathway, and then improve the symptoms of constipation. |
