艾灸会阴穴通过抑制NF-κB通路减轻子宫内膜异位症小鼠模型炎症及血管生成OA

Objective To investigate whether moxibustion at the Huiyin acupoint ameliorates endometriosis by suppressing the nuclear factor(NF)-κB signaling pathway.Methods An endometriosis mouse model was established via intraperitoneal injection of isogeneic uterine tissue fragments.Mice were randomly assigned to Normal,Sham,model(EMs),and moxibustion(Mox)groups.Hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining was used to evaluate lesional tissue structure and to score inflammation within the lesion cysts.Activation of the NF-κB pathway was assessed by measuring the phosphorylation levels of IκBα and p65 and the nuclear translocation of p65 using Western blot and immunohistochemistry.Serum levels of inflammatory factors were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Microvascular density and cell proliferation were evaluated by immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry,respectively.Results Moxibustion significantly inhibited the growth of EMs lesions(P<0.01).HE staining revealed uterine-like glandular structures in the lesions of the EMs group,whereas moxibustion significantly reduced these structures and inflammatory scores(P<0.01).Mechanistically,moxibustion inhibited IκBα phosphorylation(P<0.01)and blocked the nuclear translocation of p65(P<0.05),indicating suppression of the NF-κB signaling pathway.This was accompanied by reduced mRNA and protein expression levels of the pro-inflammatory factors TNF-α,IL-6,and IL-1β(P<0.01,P<0.05),downregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor(P<0.01),and reductions in microvascular density and cell proliferation(P<0.01).Conclusions Moxibustion at the Huiyin acupoint alleviated endometriosis by inhibiting NF-κB signaling,thereby reducing inflammation and angiogenesis.These findings provide experimental evidence supporting the traditional Chinese medicine concept that moxibustion achieves therapeutic effects through"warming,unblocking,and dissipating stasis".