Electroacupuncture-based vagal stimulation attenuates epileptic seizures through a body–brain circuit
Abstract
Vagus nerve stimulation offers a promising strategy for seizure control but remains limited by its invasive delivery. Here, we reveal electroacupuncture (EA), an ancient neuromodulatory technique rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, at specific somatic acupoints linked to the vagal–brain axis to treat epilepsy and delineate the precise underlying neural mechanisms. We demonstrate that EA at the Dazhui (GV14) acupoint exhibits broad-spectrum antiseizure efficacy across multiple seizure models. Anatomical and functional analyses reveal that GV14 activates the vagal afferents and recruits neurons in the caudal nucleus of the solitary tract (cNTS), which are essential for seizure suppression. Using targeted recombination in active populations and chemogenetic manipulation, we show that GV14 EA suppresses seizures via the recruitment of a defined cNTS–locus coeruleus–amygdala circuit. Furthermore, through vagal afferent activity screening, we identify Yaoqi (EXB9) as an alternative therapeutic acupoint that activates a shared neural pathway to robustly attenuate seizures. Importantly, thread-embedding acupuncture at GV14 or EXB9 produces sustained seizure reduction in a chronic epilepsy model. Together, these findings elucidate a functional vagal–brain circuit underlying EA-induced seizure control and support its translational potential as a minimally invasive neuromodulatory strategy to replace vagal stimulation for epilepsy treatment.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (17)
Yu Wang
Qingyang Zhang
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Shuangshuang Wu
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Keyu Hu
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Siyi Bu
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Yingjie Song
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Fan Fei
Center for Systems Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 185 Cambridge Street, CPZN, 5206, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, United States
Heming Cheng
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Di Wu
Shuang Wang
Yi Guo
Cenglin Xu
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Wenlu Li
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Lihong Li
The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Jiannong Wu
Zhejiang Collaborative Innovation Center for the Brain Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University
Yi Wang
Zhong Chen