ArticleMolecular neurobiology2015
IL-10 cytokine released from M2 macrophages is crucial for analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects of acupuncture in a model of inflammatory muscle pain.
Article in Molecular neurobiology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 90 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
90 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 162 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of acupuncture on neuroinflammatory responses in depression animals: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Combining various acupuncture therapies with multimodal analgesia to enhance postoperative pain management following total knee arthroplasty: a network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in neurology · 2024Pooled it
- The Effect of Acupuncture in Breast Cancer-Related Lymphoedema (BCRL): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Integrative cancer therapiesPooled it
- Effect of Electro-Acupuncture (EA) and Manual Acupuncture (MA) on Markers of Inflammation in Knee Osteoarthritis.Journal of pain research · 2020Trial
- Effects and Mechanisms of Wrist-Ankle Acupuncture on Inflammatory Pain in the Rat Gastrocnemius Muscle.Journal of pain research · 2026Article
- From mechanosensing to immune regulation: mechanisms of acupuncture signal initiation and amplification mediated by macrophages.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- A mechanistic hypothesis: osteopathic manipulative therapy may modulate immune cell function in chronic low back pain.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Chemogenetic Modulation of Electroacupuncture Analgesia in a Mouse Intermittent Cold Stress-Induced Fibromyalgia Model by Activating Cerebellum Cannabinoid Receptor 1 Expression and Signaling.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Impact of a Multimodal Intervention Combining Manual Therapy, Exercise, Reduced Methylxanthine Intake, and Nocturnal Light Avoidance on Inflammatory and Metabolic Profiles, Pain, Functionality, and Sleep Quality in Patients with Frozen Shoulder: A Single-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Mechanisms and Therapeutic Strategies of Macrophage Polarization in Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.JOR spine · 2025Review
- Oligonucleotide-Based Modulation of Macrophage Polarization: Emerging Strategies in Immunotherapy.Immunity, inflammation and disease · 2025Review
- Platelet-rich plasma relieves inflammation and pain by regulating M1/M2 macrophage polarization in knee osteoarthritis rats.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Inflammation and macrophage infiltration exacerbate adult incision response by early life injury.BMC anesthesiology · 2025Article
- Implications of nociceptor receptors and immune modulation: emerging therapeutic targets for autoimmune diseases.Inflammopharmacology · 2025Review
- Application of Acupuncture in Cervical Spondylotic Radiculopathy: An In-Depth Analysis and Outlook on Pathophysiological Basis and Therapeutic Mechanisms.International journal of general medicine · 2025Review
- A monocyte-derived blood transcriptomic signature reveals systemic immunosuppression in HCC and partial reversal following curative therapy.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Article
- Article
- Tryptophan Metabolism in Alzheimer's Disease with the Involvement of Microglia and Astrocyte Crosstalk and Gut-Brain Axis.Aging and disease · 2024Review
- Article
- Yerba Mate (Nutrients · 2024Article
30 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Muscle pain is a common medical problem that is difficult to treat. One nonpharmacological treatment used is acupuncture, a procedure in which fine needles are inserted into body points with the intent of relieving pain and other symptoms. Here we investigated the effects of manual acupuncture (MA) on modulating macrophage phenotype and interleukin-10 (IL-10) concentrations in animals with muscle inflammation. Carrageenan, injected in the gastrocnemius muscle of mice, induces an inflammatory response characterized by mechanical hyperalgesia and edema. The inflammation is initially a neutrophilic infiltration that converts to a macrophage-dominated inflammation by 48 h. MA of the Sanyinjiao or Spleen 6 (SP6) acupoint reduces nociceptive behaviors, heat, and mechanical hyperalgesia and enhanced escape/avoidance and the accompanying edema. SP6 MA increased muscle IL-10 levels and was ineffective in reducing pain behaviors and edema in IL-10 knockout (IL-10(-/-)) mice. Repeated daily treatments with SP6 MA induced a phenotypic switch of muscle macrophages with reduced M1 macrophages (pro-inflammatory cells) and an increase of M2 macrophages (anti-inflammatory cells and important IL-10 source). These findings provide new evidence that MA produces a phenotypic switch in macrophages and increases IL-10 concentrations in muscle to reduce pain and inflammation.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.