Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 May 25;50(5):538-552.
doi: 10.13702/j.1000-0607.20250346.

[Acupuncture effects and neuro-immune regulation: a breakthrough in "treating diseases at the root"]

[Article in Chinese]
Jia-He Tian  1 , Hong-Ye Wan  2 , Shen-Bin Liu  3
Affiliations
Free article

[Acupuncture effects and neuro-immune regulation: a breakthrough in "treating diseases at the root"]

[Article in Chinese]
Jia-He Tian et al. Zhen Ci Yan Jiu. .
Free article

Abstract
in English, Chinese

The holistic philosophy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) embodied in acupuncture therapy has gained novel insights within the neuroimmune regulatory framework. Its mechanistic framework encompasses 3 pivotal dimensions: 1) Acupuncture stimulation at acupoints transduces mechanical signals into neuroelectrical and biochemical signals, initiating localized immunomodulatory microenvironment remodeling; 2) The autonomic nervous system orchestrates systemic and organ-specific immune homeostasis through vagus nerve-mediated anti-inflammatory effects and sympathetic nerve-mediated bidirectional regulatory dynamics; 3) The enteric nervous system facilitates barrier restoration via neuropeptide-microbiota crosstalk, establishing bidirectional gut-brain axis immune communication. Emerging bioelectronic devices based on somatosensory-autonomic reflex circuits are driving the evolution of acupuncture from empirical practice to precision neuromodulation. Future research should integrate multi-omics profiling and artificial intelligence algorithms to construct a comprehensive "mechanical stimulation-neural coding-immune response" mapping paradigm. This will operationalize TCM's core principle of "treating the root of disease" into targeted neuromodulation strategies against inflammatory and immune-related disorders through defined neural circuit interventions.

针刺疗法所呈现的中医整体观念在神经免疫调控方向获得全新解读。其作用架构涵盖：局部物理刺激信号向神经电信号和化学信号转导，驱动穴区局部免疫微环境重塑；针刺调控自主神经系统经由迷走与交感神经协调全身系统性与局部靶器官的免疫稳态平衡；针刺调控肠神经系统通过神经肽-菌群交互作用完成屏障修复，建立肠-脑轴免疫通讯窗口。基于“躯体感觉-自主神经反射”研发的“电子药”设备，正推动针刺从经验操作向精准神经调控发展跃迁。未来需整合多组学与智能算法，构建“机械刺激-神经编码-免疫应答”模式图谱，将中医“治病求本”的核心理念具象化为应对炎性反应及免疫相关疾病的靶向性神经环路干预方案。.

Keywords: Acupuncture; Autonomic nerve; Neuro-immune; Somatosensory.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. LIU S B, WANG Z F, SU Y S, et al. Somatotopic organization and intensity dependence in driving distinct NPY-expressing sympathetic pathways by electroacupuncture [J]. Neuron, 2020, 108(3): 436-450.e7.
    1. WANG M, SUN J L, TIAN J H, et al. The neural basis of the visceromotor reflexes (in Chinese) [J]. Progress in Physiological Sciences, 2023, 54(6): 485-492.
    1. WANG M, LIU W, GE J, et al. The immunomodulatory mechanisms for acupuncture practice [J]. Front Immunol, 2023, 14: 1147718.
    1. TSOU A M, YANO H, PARKHURST C N, et al. Neuropeptide regulation of non-redundant ILC2 responses at barrier surfaces [J]. Nature, 2022, 611(7937): 787-793.
    1. HEIDT T, SAGER H B, COURTIES G, et al. Chronic variable stress activates hematopoietic stem cells [J]. Nat Med, 2014, 20(7): 754-758.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources