Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42900276›Full record

ArticleNeurochemical research2026

Modulating the WNK1-SPAK/OSR1-KCC2 Pathway: Acupuncture's Therapeutic Potential in Mitigating Muscle Hypertonia in Ischemic Stroke Rats.

Tian-Yi Sun, Liang-Xiao Ma, Wen-Xu Zhang, Si-Biao Lu, Jing-Yun Xiu, Meng-Yu Chen

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Article in Neurochemical research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

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0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Tian-Yi SunSchool of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Liang-Xiao MaSchool of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China. maliangxiao@vip.sina.com.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9851-0225
Wen-Xu ZhangBeijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Si-Biao LuKey Laboratory of Acupuncture and Neurology of Zhejiang Province, The Third School of Clinical Medicine (School of Rehabilitation Medicine), Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Zhejiang, China.
Jing-Yun XiuSchool of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
Meng-Yu ChenSchool of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China No. 82274655National Natural Science Foundation of China No. 82505735
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This study investigated the therapeutic effects of acupuncture on post-stroke muscle hypertonia (PSMH) in rats, focusing on the WNK1-SPAK/OSR1-KCC2 pathway to elucidate its underlying mechanisms and support clinical translation. Behavioral, electrophysiological, TTC staining, AChE staining, and transmission electron microscope analyses were used to assess the efficacy of acupuncture. RT-qPCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence were used to evaluate the expression of the medullary WNK1-SPAK/OSR1-KCC2 pathway. Pharmacological modulation using WNK463 and Gabazine suggested the involvement of WNK kinase activity. Acupuncture reduced neurological deficits and spasticity, enhanced motor recovery, suppressed spinal motor neuron hyperexcitability, and ameliorated neuromuscular dysfunction and muscular structural abnormality. Mechanistically, it downregulated WNK1, SPAK, and OSR1 and increased membrane KCC2 expression in the medulla oblongata. WNK463 partially mimicked acupuncture's effects, while Gabazine partially reversed them. Acupuncture alleviates muscle hypertonia and enhances locomotor recovery in rats with PSMH, potentially by inhibiting the medullary WNK1-SPAK/OSR1 pathway and thereby upregulating KCC2 expression and membrane localization.

Indexed as

Acupuncture TherapyIschemic StrokeMuscle HypertoniaProtein Serine-Threonine KinasesSymportersWNK Lysine-Deficient Protein Kinase 1AnimalsK Cl- CotransportersMaleProtein KinasesRatsRats, Sprague-DawleySignal TransductionK Cl- CotransportersOxsr1 protein, ratProtein KinasesProtein Serine-Threonine KinasesSymportersWnk1 protein, ratWNK Lysine-Deficient Protein Kinase 1AcupunctureKCC2Muscle hypertoniaStrokeWNK1

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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.