ArticleEvidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM2020
Effects of Electroacupuncture on Ovarian Expression of the Androgen Receptor and Connexin 43 in Rats with Letrozole-Induced Polycystic Ovaries.
Article in Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 23 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of non-pharmacological interventions on biochemical hyperandrogenism in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Journal of ovarian research · 2025Pooled it
- Acupuncture in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Narrative Review of Neuroendocrine-Immune Evidence, Reproductive Outcomes, and Evidence Gaps.International journal of women's health · 2026Review
- The Hypothalamic Nuclei Implicated in the Regulation of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Review of Its Clinical, Metabolic, and Endocrine Aspects.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Effects and mechanisms of acupuncture on women related health.Frontiers of medicine · 2024Review
- A Review on Acupuncture Efficiency in Human Polycystic Ovary/Ovarian Syndrome.Journal of pharmacopuncture · 2023Review
- Effects of electroacupuncture on the kisspeptin-gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) /luteinizing hormone (LH) neural circuit abnormalities and androgen receptor expression of kisspeptin/neurokinin B/dynorphin neurons in PCOS rats.Journal of ovarian research · 2023Article
- Diacerein ameliorates induced polycystic ovary in female rats via modulation of inflammasome/caspase1/IL1β and Bax/Bcl2 pathways.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2022Article
- Underlying mechanisms of acupuncture therapy on polycystic ovary syndrome: Evidences from animal and clinical studies.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2022Review
- Acupuncture Improves Endometrial Angiogenesis by Activating PI3K/AKT Pathway in a Rat Model with PCOS.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2022Article
- Study on the Influencing Mechanism of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG) on Oocyte Maturation in Patients with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.Computational and mathematical methods in medicine · 2022Article
- Maternal aromatase inhibition via letrozole altered RFamide-related peptide-3 and gonadotropin-releasing hormone expression in pubertal female rats.Iranian journal of basic medical sciences · 2022Article
- Effect of Acupuncture on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Animal Models: A Systematic Review.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPolycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) occurs in women of reproductive age and is often characterized by reproductive and endocrine dysfunction. Androgens play a major role in PCOS, and previous studies reported abnormal expression of Connexin 43 (Cx43) in animal models of PCOS, suggesting an association of Cx43 with PCOS pathogenesis. Experimental and clinical evidence indicated that acupuncture may be a safe and effective approach for treating reproductive and endocrine disorders in women with PCOS. This study aimed to determine the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on PCOS and its relationship with the expression of the androgen receptor (AR) and Cx43.
methodsIn total, 30 female Sprague Dawley rats (6 weeks old) were randomly divided into three groups: control group, letrozole (LE) group, and LE + EA group. Rats were administered LE solution (1.0 mg/kg) for 21 consecutive days to induce PCOS. For the LE + EA group, additional EA treatment was conducted (2 Hz, 20 min/d) with "Guanyuan" (CV3) for 14 consecutive days. After hematoxylin-eosin staining, the ovarian structure was observed with an optical microscope, and serum levels of the following hormones were examined via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA): testosterone (T), estradiol (E
resultsEA was found to restore the cyclicity and ovarian morphology in the PCOS rat model. Serum derived from the LE + EA group showed significant decreases in the levels of T, free androgen index (FAI), LH, LH/FSH ratio, AMH, INHB, and fasting serum insulin (FINS), and significant increases in the levels of E
conclusionsIn conclusion, our results showed that EA can ease hyperandrogenism and polycystic ovary morphology in PCOS rats. Furthermore, EA counteracted the letrozole-induced upregulation of AR and Cx43. These results suggested that acupuncture can break the vicious cycle initiated by excessive androgen secretion and may be an effective treatment method for improving the reproductive and endocrine dysfunction caused by PCOS.
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