Needling at the GB20 acupoint in Traditional Chinese Medicine can reverse the expression of certain genes related to axon development and regeneration in optic neuritis.

2020 Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience Effects of Retinal Transcription Regulation After GB20 Needling Treatment in Retina With Optic Neuritis Chen J, Zhang L, Gan X, Zhang R, He Y, Lv Q, et al.

Experimental Study Acupuncture Eye Diseases

To explore the molecular mechanisms of GB20 acupoint needling treatment on Optic Neuritis, a common symptom of Multiple Sclerosis, an Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE) mouse model with EAE-associated optic neuritis was utilized. Traditional Chinese Medicine practices of needling at the GB20 acupoint and GV16 acupoint control treatment were applied, followed by RNA sequencing of the retinal transcriptome to identify differentially expressed genes.

In the discussion of the results, it was found that of the genes affected by optic neuritis, needling at the GB20 acupoint reversed the expression of 21 genes, including Nr4a3, Sncg, Uchl1, and Tppp3. These genes are particularly involved in axon development and regeneration, suggesting a beneficial effect from GB20 acupoint needling. Moreover, it was discovered that GB20 needling also influenced the circadian rhythm in the mouse retina with optic neuritis. The GV16 was also identified to be an effective control site for GB20 treatment in animal studies.

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