Moxibustion and Acupuncture Ameliorate Crohn’s Disease by Regulating the Balance between Th17 and Treg Cells in the Intestinal Mucosa

Abstract

Previous studies have demonstrated that acupuncture is beneficial to patients with Crohn's disease (CD), but the mechanism underlying its therapeutic effects remains unclear. To identify the mechanism by which acupuncture treats CD, the balance between Th17 and Treg cells was assessed in CD patients. In this study, Ninety-two CD patients were randomly and equally assigned to a treatment group that were treated with herb-partitioned moxibustion and acupuncture or a control group with wheat bran-partitioned moxibustion and superficial acupuncture. The effect of these treatments on Th17 and Treg cells and their related molecular markers in the intestinal mucosa were detected before (week 0) and after (week 12) treatment. The results suggested that the ratio of Th17 and Treg cells was significantly decreased after treatment and that the levels of IL-17 and RORγt in the intestinal mucosa were obviously reduced, while the expression of FOXP3 was increased after treatment in both groups. In the treatment group, the expression of these molecules was more markedly regulated than the control group. In conclusion, moxibustion and acupuncture have been shown to regulate the ratio of Th17 and Treg cells in the intestinal mucosa of CD patients and restore the balance between these immune cell subsets.

Regulating the Balance of Th17/Treg via Electroacupuncture and Moxibustion: An Ulcerative Colitis Mice Model Based Study

“…For instance, many patients, especially in China and Asia areas, try to consult traditional medical doctors to manage their conditions by acupuncture and moxibustion [ 16 ]. Up till now, reports have demonstrated that acupuncture plus moxibustion or moxibustion alone can (1) manage the symptoms of abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody stool, and consequent weight loss [ 17 ], (2) promote recovery of damaged intestinal tissues due to inflammation [ 18 ], and (3) suppress the inflammatory response of UC [ 19 ]. However, as to the Th17/Treg, so far very few studies of acupuncture and moxibustion have direct evidence to show that they can influence the balance of these two kinds of cells.…”

The Impact of Korean Medicine Treatment on the Incidence of Parkinson’s Disease in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study in South Korea

“…These results suggested that electro-acupuncture and moxibustion may help to improve clinical results in CD patients through different central integration patterns. Acupuncture and moxibustion also inhibited levels of IL-17 and retinoid-related orphan receptor gamma (RORγt) but induced forkhead box P3 (FOXP3) expression in the intestinal mucosa of patients with CD [31]. In addition, herb-partitioned moxibustion combined with acupuncture induces mucosa inflammation remission and repairs the tight junction barrier structure in intestinal epithelial mucosa, increasing the expression of zonula occludens-1 mRNA [32].…”

Acupuncture decreased the risk of coronary heart disease in patients with fibromyalgia in Taiwan: a nationwide matched cohort study

“…Acupuncture attenuated inflammation through the vagus nerve mediated by dopamine [ 43 ]. The combination of acupuncture and moxibustion relieved Crohn’s disease by decreasing the ratio of Th17 to Treg cells in the intestinal mucosa [ 44 ]. These studies support that acupuncture has not only an analgesic effect but also an anti-inflammatory effect.…”