The Modulatory Effect of Acupuncture on the Activity of Locus Coeruleus Neuronal Cells: A Review

The Locus Coeruleus (LC) is a small collection of noradrenergic neurons located in the pons. In the brain, noradrenaline (NE) is primarily produced by noradrenergic cell groups in the LC, which is the largest group of noradrenergic neurons in the central nervous system. Acupuncture, including the electroacupuncture which is a modified acupuncture method, is known to be effective in various kinds of diseases, and the involvement of noradrenergic system in the central nervous system has been reported by previous studies. However, on whether acupuncture can modulate the LC neuronal cells activities, results vary from studies to studies. In this paper, we included twelve articles, which observed the effect of acupuncture on the activities of LC in humans and animals. Our study shows that, among twelve included studies, six reported decrease of LC activities, whereas six showed increase of LC activities after acupuncture treatment. Although it is difficult to draw a firm conclusion, the authors suggest that the difference of frequencies may play an important role in the modulatory effect of acupuncture on LC. Further studies are needed to clarify the precise mechanism of acupuncture on LC, as it can lead to a new therapeutic method for various LC-NE related diseases.