Comparison between acupuncture and simvastatin treatment effect on the rats with atherosclerosis induced by hyperlipidemia

Objective To compare the effect between the acupuncture and simvastatin on the rats with atherosclerosis( AS) induced by hyperlipidemia. Methods Forty healthy 8-week-old Sprague Dawley male rats were randomly divided into normal control group,high lipid diet group,simvastatin treatment group and acupuncture treatment group,with 10 rats in each group. The rats in normal control group were fed with normal fodder while the rats in high lipid diet group were fed with high lipid fodder. The rats in simvastatin treatment group and acupuncture group were respectively given simvastatin5 mg·kg- 1·d- 1and acupuncture treatment based on the diet of high lipid fodder. After feeding for eight weeks,the levels of total cholesterol and triacylglycerol were detected by enzyme method. The morphological alterations were detected by optics microscope. The expressions of interleukin-2( IL-2),regulated upon activation normal T expression and secretion( RANTES) and chemoattractant cytokines receptor-1( CCR1) protein in aortic cells were assayed with immunohistochemistry. The expressions of IL-2,RANTES and CCR1 mRNA were detected with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction( RT-PCR). Results The levels of total cholesterol and triacylglycerol in high lipid diet group were higher than those in normal control group,simvastatin treatment group and acupuncture treatment group( P 0. 01). The levels of total cholesterol and triacylglycerol in simvastatin treatment group were lower than those in acupuncture treatment group( P 0. 05). The optics microscope showed that the basic structure of aortic in normal control group was not altered,the aortas of high lipid diet group were atherosclerosis early alterations,and the alterations in the simvastatin treatment group and acupuncture treatment group were lightened. The expressions of IL-2,RANTES and CCR1 proteins and mRNA in the high lipid diet group were significantly higher than those in normal control group,simvastatin treatment group and acupuncture treatment group( P 0. 01,P 0. 05). And the expressions of IL-2,RANTES and CCR1 proteins and mRNA in the acupuncture treatment were dramatically higher than those in the simvastatin treatment group( P 0. 05). Conclusion Simvastatin and acupuncture can decrease expression of IL-2,RANTES and CCR-1 to prevent occurrence and development of atherosclerosis,and the effect of simvastatin is better than acupuncture.