Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
Volume 24, Issue 14, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/ijms241411654
Keywords
xerostomia; salivary hypofunction; chemotherapy; 5-fluorouracil; inflammation; acupuncture
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This animal study aimed to assess the efficacy of electroacupuncture (EA) as a means of preventing xerostomia induced by 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). The results showed that EA treatment can prevent 5-FU damage to the salivary gland, increase salivary flow rate and salivary gland weight, and decrease inflammation and tumor necrosis factor expression.
Radiotherapy and chemotherapy can impair salivary gland (SG) function, which causes xerostomia and exacerbate other side effects of chemotherapy and oral infection, reducing patients' quality of life. This animal study aimed to assess the efficacy of electroacupuncture (EA) as a means of preventing xerostomia induced by 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). A xerostomia mouse model was induced via four tail vein injections of 5-FU (80 mg/kg/dose). EA was performed at LI4 and LI11 for 7 days. The pilocarpine-stimulated salivary flow rate (SFR) and salivary glands weight (SGW) were recorded. Salivary immunoglobulin A (SIgA) and lysozyme were determined via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). SG was collected for hematoxylin and eosin staining to measure acini number and acinar cell size. Tumor necrosis factor-& alpha; (TNF-& alpha;), interleukin-1 & beta; (IL-1 & beta;), and aquaporin 5 (AQP5) mRNA expressions in SG were quantified via RT-qPCR. 5-FU caused significant decreases in SFR, SGW, SIgA, lysozyme, AQP5 expression, and acini number, while TNF-& alpha; and IL-1 & beta; expressions and acinar cell size were significantly increased. EA treatment can prevent 5-FU damage to the salivary gland, while pilocarpine treatment can only elevate SFR and AQP5 expression. These findings provide significant evidence to support the use of EA as an alternative treatment for chemotherapy-induced salivary gland hypofunction and xerostomia.
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