Effects Of Acupuncture On The Serum Hormone, The Endometrial Morphology And The Expression Of Leukaemia-inhibitory Factor And Osteopontin Proteins In Rats

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate whether the following endometrial receptivity factors: the endometrial morphology, the hormone concentrations and the protein expression of endometrial leukaemia-inhibitory factor (LIF) and osteopontin (OPN) could be improved by the acupuncture (AC) in clomiphene citrate (CC)-induced rat model during implantation period. Methods: Three groups were used: normal control (NC), AC and CC. Bloods were collected for radioimmunoassay measurement, and uterine tissues were detected with hematoxylin and eosin staining, immunohistochemistry and western blot analyses. Results: Compared with the CC group, glandular development advanced, the serum estradiol levels decreased significantly, and the glandular area and endometrial LIF and OPN expression were significantly higher in AC group. There were no significant differences in serum progesterone levels, endometrial thickness and stromal area between groups. Conclusion: These results suggest that AC can improve certain aspects of endometrial receptivity in CC-induced rat model during implantation period, which might result in endometrial state better to female reproduction.