Acupuncture normalizes the release of accumbal dopamine during the withdrawal period and after the ethanol challenge in chronic ethanol-treated rats

Accumbens neurochemical adaptations produced by binge-like alcohol consumption

“…While some studies report a sensitization of alcoholinduced dopamine release after repeated, intermittent alcohol injections (e.g., Szumlinski et al 2005;Zhao et al 2006), other studies have failed to detect differences in NAC dopamine levels between alcohol-treated and alcoholnaïve animals whether induced by an alcohol challenge injection or by repeated alcohol consumption (Rossetti et al 1993;De Montis et al 2004;Zapata et al 2006). The present data extend these earlier findings by demonstrating, for the first time, that repeated binge-like drinking of pharmacologically relevant alcohol doses does not sensitize NAC dopamine responses to either ingested or injected alcohol despite altering alcohol-induced changes in NAC serotonin, GABA, and glutamate.…”

Electroacupuncture Reduces Voluntary Alcohol Intake in Alcohol-preferring Rats via an Opiate-sensitive Mechanism

“…As evidenced, EA has been reported to counteract the effects of a variety of drugs of abuse, including morphine [6] and alcohol [7][8][9][10][11]. Because EA can suppress alcohol withdrawal symptoms [7] and inhibits alcohol-stimulated release of dopamine in nucleus accumbens [8], it was predicted that the application of EA would reduce alcohol intake in alcohol-preferring rats.…”

Photoelectric Stimulation of Defined Ear Points (Smokex-Pro Method) as an Aid for Smoking Cessation: A Prospective Observational 2-Year Study with 156 Smokers in a Primary Care Setting

“…On the other hand, there is quite some evidence from basic and clinical research showing measurable influences in several brain regions and medical entities through electric stimulation of ear and body points as possible mechanisms of action. These include reduction of stress-induced expression of c-Fos in the brain of the rat [9] , sleep activity in the rat [28] , modulation of the human limbic system [29] , normalization of the release of accumbal dopamine during the withdrawal period and after ethanol challenge in chronic ethanol-treated rats [30,31] , attenuation of repeated nicotine-induced behavioral sensitization and c-Fos expression in the nucleus accumbens and striatum of the rat [32] and postoperative vomiting following pediatric tonsillectomy [33] . There seems to be a consensus that electric stimulation of acupuncture points is more effective than acupuncture in different approaches [34][35][36][37] .…”