Neurosci Lett. 2001 Jul; 307(2): 113-6.

Auricular acupuncture decreases neuropeptide Y expression in the hypothalamus of food-deprived Sprague-Dawley rats.

Kim EH, Kim Y, Jang MH, Lim BV, Kim YJ, Chung JH, Kim CJ.

Department of Meridianology, College of Oriental Medicine, Semyung University, 390-711, Chungbuk, South Korea.

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether stimulation of auricular acupuncture point has any effects on the expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY), appetite-inducing factor particularly abundant in the mammalian hypothalamus. In food-deprived condition, enhanced NPY expression was detected in both the arcuate nucleus (ARN) and the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus via immunohistochemistry in Sprague-Dawley rats. Needling the unfed rats on the auricular point resulted in decreased NPY levels in both the ARN and PVN, while it increased NPY levels in the ARN and PVN of fed rats. The present findings indicate that auricular acupuncture may affect NPY expression in the ARN and PVN of the hypothalamus.