Parallel Individual Variation in Effectiveness of Electro-Acupuncture,Morphine Analgesia and Dorsal Pag-Spa and its Abolishment by D-Phenylalanine

Abstract

German

French

Rats were classified into either acupuncture effective animals or non-effective animals by a significant increase (p < 0.05) in tail-flick latency. This classification is proper for 0.5 mg/kg morphine analgesia and dorsal periaqueduct central gray stimulation-produced analgesia (d-PAG-SPA). Individual variation in effectiveness of acupuncture and morphine analgesia was correlated, each having the value r=0.75. Effective animals contain higher concentrations of endogenous morphine-like factor (MLF) than non-effective animals. MLF unit activity was 25 times higher in effective animals than non-effective animals. Close correlation having the value r=0.78 was observed between individual MLF contents and individual effectiveness of acupuncture analgesia. The plain pain threshold was not correlated with the contents of MLF. Concentrations of opiate receptor were not correlated with individual variations in effectiveness of acupuncture and morphine analgesia. A dose of 250 mg/kg i.p. D-phenylalanine treatment enhanced analgesia induced by intraventricular applied met⁵-enkephalin and beta-endorphin. Acupuncture, morphine analgesia and d-PAG-SPA were enhanced to a similar degree in both acupuncture effective and non-effective animals after D-phenylalanine. Hence the individual variation in effectiveness of analgesia was abolished by treatment of D-phenylalanine.

Keywords

individual variation acupuncture analgesia morphine analgesia dorsal PAG-SPA contents of MLF D-phenylalanine

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Omura

: Electroacupuncture, its electrophysiological bases and criteria for effectiveness and safety, Part I. Acupuncture & Electro- Therapeut. Res. Int. J. Vol. 1, 157–182, 1975.

Omura

: Pain threshold measurement before and after acupuncture: Controversial results of radiant heat method and electrical method and the roles of ACTH-like substances and endrophins. Acupuncture & Electro- therapeut. Res, Int. J. Vol. 3, 1–21, 1978.

Clark

W.C

.: Acupunctural analgesia: Evaluation by signal detection theory. Science Vol. 184, 1096–1098, 1974.

Chapman

D.R.

Gehrig

J.D.

and Wilson

M.E

.: Acupuncture compared with 33 percent nitrous oxide for dental analgesia. Anesthesiology Vol. 42, 532–537, 1975.

Mayer

D.J.

Price

D.D.

and Rafii

: Antagonism of acupuncture analgesia in man by the narcotic antagonist naloxone. Brain Res. Vol. 121, 368–372, 1977.

Sjolund

Terenius

and Eriksson

: Increased cerebrospinal fluid level of endorphins after electro-acupuncture. Acta Physiologica Scandinavia Vol. 100, 382–384, 1977.

Takeshige

Luo

C.P.

Kamada

Oka

Murai

and Hisamitsu

: Relationship between midbrain neurons (peri-aqueductal central gray and midbrain retricular formation) and acupuncture analgesia, animal hypnosis. Advances in Pain Research and Therapy, 3, edited by Bonica

J.J.

. Raven Press, New York, 1979, pp. 614–621.

Ehrenpreis

Comaty

J.E.

and Myles

S.B

.: Naloxone reversible analgesia produced by D-phenylalanine in mice. Characteristics and Function of Opioids, edited by Van Ree and Terenius. Elsevier/North- Holland Biomedical Press, 1978, pp. 417–419.

Ehrenpreis

Balagot

R.C.

Comaty

J.E.

and Myles

S.S.

: Naloxone reversible analgesia in mice produced by D-phenylalanine and hydro-cinnamic acid, inhibitors of carboxypeptidase A. Advances in Pain Research and Therapy, 3, edited by Bonica

J.J.

. Raven Press, New York, 1979, pp. 479–488.

10.

Pelligrino

L.J.

and Cushman

A.J

.: A stereotaxic atras of the rat brain. Appleton-Century-Crofts, Division of Meredith Publishing Co., New York, 1969.

11.

Takeshige

Luo

C.P.

and Kamada

: Modulation of EEG and unit discharges of deep structures of brain during acupunctural stimulation and hypnosis of rabbits. Advances in Pain Research and Therapy, 1, edited by Bonica

J.J.

and Albe-Fessard, O., Raven Press, New York, 1976, pp. 781–785.

12.

Pasternak

G.W.

Wilson

H.A.

and Snyder

S.H

.: Differential effects of protein-modifying reagents on receptor binding of opiate agonists and antagonists. Molecular Pharmacol. Vol. 11, 340–351, 1975.

13.

Gray

E.G.

and Whittaker

V.P

.: The isolation of nerve endings from brain: An electro-microscopic study of cell fragments derived by homogenization and centrifugation. J. Anatomy Vol. 96, 79–88, 1962.

14.

Whittaker

V.P.

Michaelson

I.A.

and Kirkland

R.J.A

.: The separation of synaptic vesicles from nerve-ending particles ('synaptosomes'). Biochemical J. Vol. 90, 293–303, 1964.

15.

Terenius

: A characteristic of the “receptor” for narcotic analgesics in synaptic plasma membrane fraction from rat brain. Acta Pharmacologica Toxicology Vol. 33, 377–384, 1973.

16.

Colquhoun

: The relation between classical and cooperative models for drug action. Drug Receptors, edited by Rand

H.P.

University Park Press, London, 1973, p. 149.

17.

Glowinski

and Iversen

L.L

.: Regional studies of catecholamines in 3 the rat brain-1: The disposition of [3H]norepinephrine, [3H]dopamine and [3H]DOPA in various regions. J. Neurochem. Vol. 113, 655–669, 1966.

18.

Lowry

O.H.

Rosebrough

N.J.

Farr

A.L.

and Randall

R.J

.: Protein measurement with the fol in phenol reagent. J. Biological Chem. Vol. 193, 265–275, 1951.

19.

Akil

Madden

W.J.

Patrick

R.L.

and Barchas

J.D

.: Stress-induced increase in endogenous opiate peptides concurrent analgesia and its partial reversal by naloxone. Opiate and Endogenous Opioid Peptides. Elsevier/North Holland, Biomedical Press, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1976, pp. 63–70.

20.

Baran

Shuster

Eleftheriou

B.E.

and Bailey

D.W

.: Opiate receptors in mice: Genetic differences. Life Sciences Vol. 17, 633–640, 1976.

21.

Peets

J.M.

and Pomeranz

: CXBK mice deficient in opiate receptors show poor electroacupuncture analgesia. Nature Vol. 273, 675–676, 1978.

22.

Hisamitsu

: Role of limbic system in acupuncture analgesia, 1. Analysis of evoked potential in limbic system induced by acupuncture stimulation (Japanese). Showa Medical J. Vol. 39, 551–557, 1979.

23.

Kuhar

M.J.

Pert

C.B.

and Snyder

S.H

.: Regional distribution of opiate receptor binding in monkey and human brain. Nature 245, 447–450, 1973.

24.

Bergman

Altstetter

and Weissman

B.A

.: In vivo interaction of morphine and endogenous opiate-like peptides. Life Sciences Vol. 23, 2601–2608, 1978.