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Published on: July 21, 2023
Decoding the Therapeutic Effects of Acupuncture in Hemorrhagic Stroke Using Single-Cell RNA Sequencing
Chen Ruan1,2, Jia Du1,2, Wentao Zhang1
1Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province Affiliated to Zhejiang Chinese Medical University (College of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Clinical Medicine), Hangzhou, China.
Background:
Acupuncture has been proposed as a therapeutic intervention for stroke recovery, yet the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood.
Method:
In this study, we used a mouse model of hemorrhagic stroke induced by autologous blood injection to investigate the effects of acupuncture on post-stroke recovery at the cellular and molecular levels, utilizing single-cell RNA sequencing.
Results:
Our findings revealed that acupuncture modulates the gene expression of microglia, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes, three major glial cell types, which may contribute to the improvement of stroke-induced phenotypes. Notably, we identified a potential role of the APOE-TREM2 signaling axis, with ligand-binding interactions enhancing microglia activation and promoting their neuroprotective functions. These findings also suggested that acupuncture may promote microglia-astrocyte interactions, leading to enhanced neuroinflammation resolution and tissue repair.
Conclusions:
Our study provided new insights into the cellular mechanisms underlying acupuncture's therapeutic effects in stroke recovery and highlighted the potential of targeting glial cell-mediated pathways, including APOE-TREM2, as a strategy for improving post-stroke rehabilitation.
