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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurosci.

Sec. Translational Neuroscience

Volume 19 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnins.2025.1637037

Electroacupuncture Treatment can Improve Cognitive Impairment in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats: A preliminary DTI Study

Provisionally accepted
Jipeng LiuJipeng Liu1*Bing-Xuan HanBing-Xuan Han1Liu YuLiu Yu2Binbin NieBinbin Nie3Tao BianTao Bian4Chuan LiuChuan Liu5Tian-Qi XiaTian-Qi Xia5Yu GongYu Gong1Longteng TuLongteng Tu1Jing ZhangJing Zhang1Bing-Hui WangBing-Hui Wang1Yi YangYi Yang1Song-Li LiSong-Li Li1Lin-Ding HeLin-Ding He1Qing-Guo LiuQing-Guo Liu1*Meng XuMeng Xu6*
  • 1School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
  • 2Beijing Union University Special Educational College, Beijing, China
  • 3Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of High Energy Physics, Beijing, China
  • 4Rulin Community Health Center, Yanqing District, Beijing, China
  • 5Wangjing Community Health Center, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China
  • 6Department of Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Third Affiliated Hospital, Beijing, China

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Hypertension is a significant risk factor for cognitive impairment. Our group's previous rs-fMRI study has found that acupuncture can enhance the functional connectivity of brain regions related to cognitive function, thereby protecting the cognitive function of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs). This study aimed to reveal the effects of electroacupuncture on the white matter structure in the brain regions of SHRs using the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) technique. 20 SHRs were divided into the electroacupuncture group (EA) and the model group (SHR), and 10 Wistar-Kyoto rats were established as the normal control group (WKY). Electroacupuncture was applied to Taichong (LR3) and Zusanli (ST36) acupoints for 12 weeks, with treatment every other day. Blood pressure was measured once every 2 weeks, with DTI scans and the Morris water maze (MWM) tests performed at the end of the 12-week electroacupuncture intervention. The results showed that electroacupuncture significantly decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressure and enhanced spatial learning and memory in SHRs. DTI analysis revealed that hypertension led to increased axial diffusivity (AD), mean diffusivity (MD), and radial diffusivity (RD) values in brain regions such as the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, striatum, amygdaloid body, posterior lobe of cerebellum, olfactory bulb, and piriform cortex, indicating white matter microstructural damage. Electroacupuncture improved these injuries, especially significantly improving the integrity of the hippocampal white matter structure. Correlation analysis showed that hippocampal white matter structure parameters were significantly correlated with behavioral manifestations of MWM. Therefore, we speculate that electroacupuncture can alleviate white matter damage in the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, striatum, and other brain regions, thereby preventing cognitive impairment in SHRs, which may be one of the reasons for the efficacy of electroacupuncture.

Keywords: Hypertension, Impairment of Cognitive Function, Electroacupuncture, Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), white matter structure, SHRs

Received: 29 May 2025; Accepted: 15 Aug 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Liu, Han, Yu, Nie, Bian, Liu, Xia, Gong, Tu, Zhang, Wang, Yang, Li, He, Liu and Xu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence:
Jipeng Liu, School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
Qing-Guo Liu, School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
Meng Xu, Department of Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Third Affiliated Hospital, Beijing, China

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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