Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 16, 2026
Monitoring Acupuncture Effects on Human Brain by fMRI
Published on: April 8, 2010
Integrated Multi-Omics Analyses Identify Acupuncture-Associated Changes in Gut Microbiota, Short-Chain Fatty Acids,
Lu Liu1, Zili Tang1, Yuyan Wang1
1Acupuncture and Tuina School, Acupoint Effects Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.
Background:
Gut microbiota alterations and gut-brain communication have been implicated in migraine. Acupuncture is a non-pharmacological therapy for migraine, and our previous studies showed it alleviates hyperalgesia in chronic migraine (CM) models, possibly through gut microbiota and microbial metabolites. However, whether acupuncture-associated effects in CM are accompanied by coordinated changes in gut microbial composition, short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) profiles, and trigeminal nucleus caudalis (TNC) gene expression remains unclear.
Methods:
A nitroglycerin (NTG)-induced CM rat model was used. Rats were randomized to VEH, NTG, NTG+true acupuncture (NTG+TA), and NTG+sham acupuncture (NTG+SA) groups. TA was administered daily at acupoints GB8 and GB34 for nine consecutive days. Mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia were assessed using paw withdrawal threshold and tail-flick latency. TNC levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 were quantified by ELISA. Furthermore, 16S rRNA sequencing, SCFA profiling in fecal and plasma samples, and TNC transcriptomics were integrated to characterize acupuncture-associated changes related to the microbiota-gut-brain axis. S100a4 and Vamp8 expression was further validated by RT-qPCR.
Results:
TA significantly reduced migraine-like hyperalgesia and neuroinflammation in CM rats. Compared with the NTG group, the NTG+TA group showed altered gut microbiota composition, characterized by higher relative abundances of Lactobacillus murinus and Parabacteroides goldsteinii, and lower relative abundances of Lachnoclostridium, Ruminococcus, and Oscillospiraceae. Fecal acetic acid was significantly lower in NTG+TA than NTG. Exploratory transcriptomic analysis further suggested enrichment of neuroinflammation-related pathways and identified increased expression of candidate genes, including S100a4 and Vamp8, in the NTG+TA group. RT-qPCR confirmed expression changes of S100a4 and Vamp8 consistent with the transcriptomic results. Integrative correlation analysis found that Parabacteroides goldsteinii was positively correlated with S100a4 and Vamp8, but negatively correlated with acetic acid.
Conclusion:
In NTG-induced CM rats, TA reduced hyperalgesia and neuroinflammation, accompanied by changes in gut microbiota, SCFA profiles, and TNC gene expression, providing preliminary associative evidence that warrants further mechanistic and clinical validation.
