| Preventive acupuncture and moxibustion are important methods of treating pre-disease in traditional Chinese medicine, which have played an important role in disease prevention, treatment, health care and life extension. According to recent researches, the regulation effect of preventive mexibustion is extensive and involving many fundamental physiological processes. The features of preventive moxibustion can be summarized into three traits:beneficial, extensive, and latent. According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, preventive moxibustion enhance the anti-disease ability by building up the health energy (Zheng Qi). We hold that self-rebalance ability is the core part of health energy (Zheng Qi). As a benign stressor giving mild pre-stress to the body, moxibustion will enhance the self-rebalance ability and correct the potential dysfunctions to enable the body to mobilize more potential abilities to resist the damages and illnesses causing by the following over-stress. In our latest experiment, we observed that preventive moxibustion could reduce incidence and severity of disease (adjuvant arthritis, dysmenorrhea model) and give benign regulation to "sub-health" state (menopausal model) in modeled rats. Therefore, we are going to observe the effect of preventive moxibustion on healthy state of animals. Considering the complexity of the comprehensive effect, we need a physiological index that can be representative for the comprehensive quality of the body and the "benign pre-stress" effect of preventive moxibustion. Locomotivity is one of the basic abilities representing the vitality of the body. According to physiology studies, locomotivity depend on the ensemble coordinating operation of all the organs and systems of the body. According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, strong locomotivity means strong health energy (Zheng Qi), which is the comprehensive representation of the health condition of the human body. Through observing the effect of preventive moxibustion on locomotivity of animals, we can know how the body will be healthier by strengthening the health energy (Zheng Qi) with preventive moxibustion. As a kind of locomotivity, extreme exercise endurance, being able to force the body to fully perform its potential, is representative of the comprehensive quality of the body. Meanwhile, being a harmful over-stressor that will lead to excessive stress, extreme exercise endurance can be paired with preventive moxibustion in the comparison of the effect of benign pre-stress and harmful over-stress.Energy metabolism is fundamental for all the functional activity of animal; and stress is the change of internal environment to external environment. The stability of energy metabolism and stress is important in the maintaining of the stability of the whole body. Being a harmful stressor, extreme exercise will not only cause over-stress response but also needs continuous supply of energy, therefore it can be a link between stress and energy metabolism. As a brain-gut peptide, ghrelin may be playing a key role in regulating the balance between energy metabolism and stress response or even other systems. Stress, energy metabolism and ghrelin level may have influence on each other in the keeping of the homeostasis. We hold that these index can represent the self-rebalance ability of the body, and their changes in exhaustive exercise can be useful in the study of effect of preventive moxibustion on the health of the body. Guanyuan(RN-4) and Mingmen(DU-4)point point are the most commonly used points in health keeping because of their extensive effects and their opposite nature in Yin-Yang. Comparing the two point in the experiment not only can represent the common effect of moxibustion but also show the deviation effect of different acu-points.Objective:To discuss the enhancement of health energy and improvement of constitution with preventive moxibustion through observing the effect of preventive moxibustion at Guanyuan and Mingmen points on exercise endurance of rats. To discuss the correlation and influence of preventive moxibustion on ghrelin level and energy metabolism of exhaustive swimming rats through observation of the changes of liver glycogen, serum lactate, myocardium NOS, serum NOS, hormone of HPA axis, hormone of HPG axis, hypothalamus ghrelin and serum ghrelin before and after preventive moxibustion and exhausted swimming. And also introduce preventive moxibustion to sports medicine.Methods:Forty-eight male SD rats were divided into six groups:normal control group, Guanyuan moxibustion group, Mingmen moxibustion group, exhaustion control group, Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group and Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group. All moxibustion groups received a ten-minute moxibustion every two days, ten times in all. The two control groups received sham treatment at the same time with moxibustion groups. In the twentith day, twenty four hours after the last moxibustion, exhaustion control group, Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group and Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group received a warm water exhaustive swimming and the swimming exhausted time was recorded. After swimming exhaustion, all rats were executed and sampled whole blood, right lobe of liver, heart muscle, hypothalamus, hypophysis and right side adrenal gland. The swimming time of all swimming groups were compared. Glycogen level in liver, lactate level in serum, NOS level in myocardium, NOS level in serum, hormone level of HPA axis, hormone level of HPG axis, ghrelin level in hypothalamus and ghrelin level in serum were detected.Results:1Swimming exhausted timeCompared to the exhaustion control group, the swimming exhausted time of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group and Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group were significantly higher(P<0.01, P＜0.05), there was no difference between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P>0.05)2Glycogen level in liverCompared to the normal control group, the glycogen level in liver of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly decreased (P＜0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the glycogen level in liver of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group and Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group were significantly increased (P＜0.01, P<0.05), and there was no difference between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P>0.05).3lactate level in bloodCompared to the normal control group, the lactate level in blood of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the lactate level in blood of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group and Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group were significantly dropped (P＜0.01), and there was no difference between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P>0.05).4NOS level in myocardium and serumCompared to the normal control group, the NOS level in myocardium of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P＜0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the NOS level in myocardium of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P＜0.05). The change pattern of NOS level in serum was the same as that in myocardium.5CRH level in hypothalamusCompared to the normal control group, the CRH level in hypothalamus of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the CRH level in hypothalamus of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P<0.05).6ACTH level in hypophysisCompared to the normal control group, the ACTH level in hypophysis of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the ACTH level in hypophysis of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P＜0.05).7Cortisol level in serumCompared to the normal control group, the cortisol level in serum of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the cortisol level in serum of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P＜0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P<0.01).8GnRH level in hypothalamusCompared to the normal control group, the GnRH level in hypothalamus of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the GnRH level in hypothalamus of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P＜0.05).9Testosterone level in serumCompared to the normal control group, the testosterone level in serum of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P＜0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the testosterone level in serum of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P<0.05).10Ghrelin level in hypothalamus and serumCompared to the normal control group, the ghrelin level in hypothalamus of Guanyuan moxibustion group and Mingmen moxibustion group had no significant changes (P>0.05), that of the exhaustion control group significantly increased (P<0.01).Compared to the exhaustion control group, the ghrelin level in hypothalamus of Mingmen moxibustion+exhaustion group was significantly decreased (P<0.01), but the change of Guanyuan moxibustion+exhaustion group was not significant (P>0.05), and there were significant differences between the two moxibustion+exhaustion groups (P<0.05). The change pattern of ghrelin level in serum was the same as that in hypothalamus.Conclusions:1Preventive moxibustion was benign stress. Its regulation on the body was not be shown by the changes of biochemical index. But obviously, it enabled the body to perform better in the resistance to harmful stress.2Exhaustive exercise was a harmful over-stressor that led to the excessive stress of the body. In the excessive stress, stress axis was over-activated, energy reserve was over-used and energy metabolism was in a state of disorder.3Preventive moxibustion at both Guanyuan(RN-4) and Mingmen(DU-4) have a significant improvement on rat’s exercise tolerance, which indicates its potential value in sport medicine. The beneficial regulation of preventive moxibustion possibly related to the balance of energy metabolism as a result of the adjustment of stress response, HPG axis, NOS activity and ghrelin level. The effect was accomplished by the increase of the comprehensive abilities of the body to keep the balance and stability in the internal environment. We called it the self-rebalance ability. We hold that self-rebalance ability is the core of health energy (Zheng Qi).4The effect of preventive moxibustion can be diverted by the property of different acu-points. Although the effect on swimming exhausted time and energy metabolism of Guanyuan point had no difference to that of Mingmen point, its effect on some indices might be delayed. Or the regulating effect of Guanyuan point on energy metabolism though different pathway. The difference between two acu-points needs to be further researched. |
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