[The relation between acupuncture manipulations and responsive discharges of cutaneous receptors]

Nine types of mechanoreceptors of hair skin in 46 rabbits were identified by recording discharges of single afferent fiber in posterior femoral cutaneous nerve from fine filaments by dissection. When seven manipulations, i.e. lift and thrust, twist and twirl, rotate, serape, flike the needle and finger-pressure were used to stimulate each receptor, their responsive discharges were observed. Data at 165 units were collected totally, 89 units in which were for the relation between manipulations and discharge patterns, and the other 76 units for discharges responding to manipulations at different distances from the receptive field. Nine types of receptors having been observed are able to respond to any acupuncture manipulations, it is thus clear that there is not any special "acupuncture receptor." Same kind of discharge pattern existed in different types of receptor when stimulated by the same acupuncture manipulation, whereas different discharge patterns can be found at the same unit when the manipulation changes. We believe that it is due to the movement form; force amount and time duration of the manipulations. Receptors responding to acupuncture were not limited to one point only, but involving a certain field surrounding the needle point. The size of this field varied with the types of receptors and kinds of manipulations. Our previous articles had reported that the acupuncture photograph leading from nerve and building on impulses induced by acupuncture and the groups of afferent fibers conducting acupuncture signals changed with different manipulations, in this paper the reasons for that have been expounded by presenting the relationship between the responsive discharges of receptors and the manipulations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)