Abstract：Objective: To explore the therapeutic effect and mechanism of electroacupuncture (EA) on cognitive dysfunction in stroke rats. Methods: Totally 42 SD rats were randomly divided into Sham group, MCAO group, MCAO+RAPA group, MCAO+EA group, MCAO+RAPA+EA group, MCAO+EA+Vector group, and MCAO+EA+OE-mTOR group, with 6 rats in each group. The middle cerebral artery embolization (MCAO) model was established, except for the Sham group. Rats in MCAO+RAPA group were intraperitoneally injected with 3 mg/kg RAPA, rats in MCAO+EA group were treated with electroacupuncture at Fengchi, Fengfu and Dashui points, and rats in MCAO+EA+Vector group and MCAO+EA+OE-mTOR group were injected with mTOR overexpression empty vector or mTOR overexpression vector in the lateral ventricle of the brain. The Zea-longa neurological deficit scoring system was used to evaluate neurobehavior. Morris water maze test was used to evaluate cognitive function. 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining was used to evaluate the cerebral infarction area. Hematoxylin eosin (HE) staining was used to evaluate the pathological changes. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the contents of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-10 (IL-10). Lens electron microscope was used to detect autophagosomes. Western blot was used to detect mTOR, IL-6, IL-10, NLRP3, Beclin-1, p62, LC3 Ⅰ/Ⅱ protein expression. Results: Compared with the Sham group, the Zea longa score, cerebral infarction area, TNF-α and IL-6 level, autophagosome number, Beclin-1, LC3 Ⅰ/Ⅱ, and NLRP3 protein levels in MCAO group increased, while the neurological function score, IL-10 content, p62 and mTOR protein levels decreased (P<0.05). Compared with MCAO group, the Zea-longa score, cerebral infarction area, TNF-α and IL-6 level, autophagosome number, Beclin-1, LC3 Ⅰ/Ⅱ and NLRP3 protein levels in MCAO+EA group decreased, while the neurological function score, IL-10 level, p62 and mTOR protein levels increased (P<0.05). Compared with MCAO group, the number of autophagosomes, the protein levels of beclin-1, LC3 Ⅰ/Ⅱ and NLRP3 increased, while the protein levels of p62 and mTOR decreased in MCAO+RAPA group (P<0.05). Compared with MCAO+EA+Vector group, the protein levels of Beclin-1, LC3 Ⅰ/Ⅱ and NLRP3 in MCAO+EA+OE-mTOR group increased, while the protein levels of p62 and mTOR decreased (P<0.05). Conclusion: EA can improve cognitive function and inflammatory state in MCAO rats, and the mechanism may be related to the upregulation of mTOR / NLRP3 pathway and inhibition of autophagy.
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2025, Vol. 31 
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