Acupuncture proven?

Written by Felix Bohne, on science-meets-society, May 31st 2010.
Translated by Ulrike Anderson. See the original article in German
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I would basically describe myself as a skeptic with regards to alternative medicine. I recently read a mathematical paper on a “homeopathic urine self-experiment with a potency of C30.” I think it was in a discussion on Scienceblogs.de, where a commentator calculated that the aforementioned C30 potency of the original millilitre of urine, in 30 dilution steps of 1/100 of water, would correspond to a total dilution of the original millilitre of urine in numerous cubic light years of water. I had to smirk a little.

But what about acupuncture? I remember a study in which one group received acupuncture through band-aids while in another group only the band-aids were punctured and there was no difference in the result. But there are also studies in certain areas, like pain therapy, that show a significant effect. And now there’s a new paper, in Nature Neuroscience no less, which at least supposedly has a harsh “Peer Review” process, which shows a significant molecular effect in a mouse trial! Still a skeptic, or giving it another thought?

The results definitely show that, in the mouse trial, the nocireceptors, which perceive signals of injury or potential injury in the skin, that were activated by the acupuncture, react with an overproduction of adenosine. Adenosine is an ATP that helps provide the cell with energy, regulates the sleep rhythm and heartbeat, but also has a natural pain-relieving function.

In this experiment, an acupuncture needle was applied to an established acupuncture point on the mice, the Zusanli Point, on the knee. The needle was turned every 5 minutes during a 30 minute session (I guess that’s how the masters of this practice do it!). Afterward, mechanical or temperature-induced pain reactions were invoked and the reactions were measured. In addition, the concentration of adenosine was measured in the tissue near the acupuncture point.

This showed that, in the acupuncture on mice, the reaction to the stimulation was much less, which points to acupuncture having a pain-relieving effect. Furthermore, increases of up to 24 times the extracellular adenosine concentrations were researched via HPLC (High-performance liquid chromatography). To substantiate these results, the researchers used an adenosine-receptor-knock-out-mouse who was unable to perceive the signal and the effect of the acupuncture was cancelled. For an additional experiment, the researchers used a leukaemia medication that delays the breakdown of adenosine by a substantial degree and this also extended the pain-relieving effect of the acupuncture.

I’m no expert on the subject, but this study makes a solid impression on me and the journal certainly speaks for itself.