NMDA Receptors of Gastric-Projecting Neurons in the Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus Mediate the Regulation of Gastric Emptying by EA at Weishu (BL21)

A large number of studies have been conducted to explore the efficacy of electroacupuncture (EA) for the treatment of gastrointestinal motility. While several lines of evidence addressed the basic mechanism of EA on gastrointestinal motility regarding effects of limb and abdomen points, the mechanism for effects of the back points on gastric motility still remains unclear. Here we report that the NMDA receptor (NMDAR) antagonist kynurenic acid inhibited the gastric emptying increase induced by high-intensity EA at BL21 and agonist NMDA enhanced the effect of the same treatment. EA at BL21 enhanced NMDAR, but not AMPA receptor (AMPAR) component of miniature excitatory postsynaptic current (mEPSC) in gastric-projecting neurons of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV). In sum, our data demonstrate an important role of NMDAR-mediated synaptic transmission of gastric-projecting DMV neurons in mediating EA at BL21-induced enhancement of gastric emptying.