iTRAQ based proteomics analysis on insomnia rats treated with Mongolian medical warm acupuncture.

Objective To explore the proteomic changes in the hypothalamus of rats treated with Mongolian medical warm acupuncture for insomnia therapy based proteomics. Method We used an iTRAQ-based quantitative proteomic approach to identify proteins that potential molecular mechanisms involved in the treatment of insomnia by Mongolian medical warm acupuncture. Result In total, 7477 proteins were identified, of which 36 proteins showed increased levels and 45 proteins showed decreased levels in insomnia model group (M) compared to healthy control group (C), 72 proteins showed increased levels and 44 proteins showed decreased levels from the warm acupuncture treated insomnia group (W) compared to healthy controls (C), 28 proteins showed increased levels and 17 proteins showed decreased levels from the warm acupuncture treated insomnia group (W) compared to insomnia model group (M). Compared with healthy control groups, warm acupuncture treated insomnia group showed obvious recovered. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that upregulation of neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction and oxytocin signaling was the most significantly elevated regulate process of Mongolian medical warm acupuncture treatment for insomnia. Proteins showed that increased/decreased expression in the warm acupuncture treated insomnia group included Prolargin (PRELP), NMDA receptor synaptonuclear-signaling and neuronal migration factor (NSMF), Transmembrane protein 41B (TMEM41B) and Microtubule-associated protein 1B (MAP1B) to adjust insomnia. Conclusion A combination of findings in this study suggest that warm acupuncture treated is efficacious in improving sleep by regulating the protein expression process in an experimental rat model and may be of potential benefit in treating insomnia patients with the added advantage with no adverse effects. Copyright 2020 The Author(s).