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Mechanisms Underlying the Effect of Acupuncture on Cognitive Improvement: A Systematic Review of Animal Studies

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Abstract

Acupuncture has been reported to be beneficial in treating cognitive impairment in various pathological conditions. This review describes the effort to understand the signaling pathways that underlie the acupunctural therapeutic effect on cognitive function. We searched the literature in 12 electronic databases from their inception to November 2013, with full text available and language limited to English. Twenty-three studies were identified under the selection criteria. All recruited animal studies demonstrate a significant positive effect of acupuncture on cognitive impairment. Findings suggest acupuncture may improve cognitive function through modulation of signaling pathways involved in neuronal survival and function, specifically, through promoting cholinergic neural transmission, facilitating dopaminergic synaptic transmission, enhancing neurotrophin signaling, suppressing oxidative stress, attenuating apoptosis, regulating glycometabolic enzymes and reducing microglial activation. However, the quality of reviewed studies has room for improvement. Further high-quality animal studies with randomization, blinding and estimation of sample size are needed to strengthen the recognition of group differences.

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Author Contributions

Mason CP Leung and Belinda Garner designed this study and guided manuscript writing. Ka Keung Yip, Wai Chin Li and Flora KW Siu were responsible for retrieving literature and preparing the manuscript.

Author Statements

The manuscript is original, has not been submitted to or is not under consideration by another publication, has not been previously published in any language or any form, including electronic, and contains no disclosure of confidential information or authorship/patent application/funding source disputations.

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None declared.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, China

    Mason Chin Pang Leung

  2. Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, China

    Ka Keung Yip

  3. State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, People’s Republic of China

    Yuen Shan Ho

  4. Centralized Animal Facility, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, China

    Flora Ka Wai Siu

  5. Centre for Education in Environmental Sustainability and Department of Science and Environmental Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, China

    Wai Chin Li

  6. Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, China

    Belinda Garner

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  1. Mason Chin Pang Leung
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  2. Ka Keung Yip
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  3. Yuen Shan Ho
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  4. Flora Ka Wai Siu
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  5. Wai Chin Li
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  6. Belinda Garner
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Correspondence to Mason Chin Pang Leung.

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Leung, M.C.P., Yip, K.K., Ho, Y.S. et al. Mechanisms Underlying the Effect of Acupuncture on Cognitive Improvement: A Systematic Review of Animal Studies. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol 9, 492–507 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11481-014-9550-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11481-014-9550-4

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