Serum E₂and LH And Mammary Bcl-2Influenced By Acupoint Catgut-embedding In Rat With Mammary Glands Hyperplasia

Mammary glands hyperplasia is one of breast diseases frequently seen in youngwoman characterized by long course, high recurrence rate, increasing incidence andyounger onset. It is also a precancerous lesion, and reports both domestic and abroadshow the higher risk of breast cancer in patients with mammary glands hyperplasia thanin healthy population. No detailed understanding has been achieved on its pathogenesisand pathogen. Mammary glands hyperplasia is considered in modern medicine tocorrelate to imbalance in sex hormones and menstrual period, and to obstructed hepaticQi, phlegm coagulation and blood stasis, and derangement in thoroughfare-conceptionmeridian in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In recent decades, intensive and in-depthresearches have been made on mammary glands hyperplasia in Traditional ChineseMedicine, and acupuncture has been gradually considered as an important approaches.Acupoint Catgut-embedding （ACE）, a combined therapy combining modern biologicalmaterial and acupuncture, has its specific value clinical practice.Objective: we observed estradiol （E₂）, luteotropic hormone （LH） and the proteinof Bcl-2, an anti-apoptotic gene in SD Rat with mammary glands hyperplasia prior toand post ACE to discuss its mechanism in treatment of mammary glands hyperplasiaand prevention from breast cancer.Methods:60SD rats, female without pregnancy, were randomized into6groupswith10rats in each, including a normal control, a model control, an acupuncture group,an ACE confrontation group, a one-cycle ACE group, and a two-cycle ACE group.Model of mammary glands hyperplasia was established with estrogen combination inrats treated with0.5mg/kg/d hydroxyestrin benzoate i.m. in medial rear leg for25d in a row followed by4mg/kg/d luteosterone successively for5d, both of which weresubstituted for normal saline for the normal control with the same schedule, method andvolume injected. Intervention was launched for two identical groups of acupointsalternating in group1（chest center, bilateral Wu YI, and bilateral sanyinchia） and group2（Gan Shu, bilateral Tian Zong, and bilateral Zusanli）, after the successfulestablishment was proved by pathology in rat killed randomly at day30ofestablishment.5ml ocular blood from rat post treatment was tested for serum E₂and LH.Diameter and height of the2ndand3rdpairs of nipples were measured to during theintervention to evaluate the relief of mammary hyperemia and edema. Pathology ofmammary tissues of rats sacrificed at the end of the intervention were evaluated for thequantity of lobes, hyperplasia of gland epidermis, secretion of alveoli, and hyperplasiaof duct epidermis. Bcl-2protein in mammary tissue was also analyzed through IHC.Results:1.Variation in nipple appearance of rats: parameters under observation:（1） nippleheight: lowered height was observed in each treatment group compared with the modelcontrol with statistical significance （P＜0.05）;（2） mammary diameter: the diameterdecreased in either the acupuncture group or two-cycle ACE group compared with themodel control with significance （P＜0.05）. No significant difference was found in anyother treatment group.2.Pathological changes in rat mammary tissue: compared with the model control,Each treatment group showed the decreased quantity in acinus, alleviated hyperplasia inepidermis of both glands and ducts, and lowered secretion from acinus.3.Changes in serum E₂and LH in rats: serum LH showed a significant decrease inthe model group than in the model control （P＜0.01）. Compared with the model group,significantly higher LH nearing that in the normal control was noticed in all treatmentgroups （P＜0.01） except for one-cycle ACE group. Compared with the normal control,significant higher serum E₂was found in either the model control （P＜0.01） orone-cycle ACE group （P＜0.05）. Lowered E₂was also observed in either acupuncturegroup or two-cycle ACE group compared with the model control with dramaticsignificance （P＜0.01）, and in the ACE confrontation group compared with one-cycleACE group with significance.（P＜0.05）.4.Variation in Bcl-2protein expressed by rat mammary tissue: compared with thenormal control, statistically stronger expression was observed in the model control （P＜0.01）, one-cycle ACE group （P＜0.01） and ACE confrontation group （P＜0.05）. Significantly weakened expression of Bcl-2was found in the acupuncture group （P＜0.01）, two-cycle ACE group （P＜0.01） and ACE confrontation group （P＜0.05） than inthe model control.Conclusion:1.Either ACE or acupuncture may ameliorate the appearance, morphology andpathology of the breasts to make them recover to normality, and treat or reversemammary glands hyperplasia through regulating levels of sexual hormones inmammary glands hyperplasia rats. They may also intervene expression of Bcl-2proteinin mammary tissue in rats, thereby preventing from oncogenesis of breast cancer.2.Intervention duration in ACE or acupuncture correlates positively to therapeuticresults of mammary glands hyperplasia.