{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]],"date-time":"2026-08-26T05:21:18Z","timestamp":1787721678877,"version":"build-2784847793"},"reference-count":43,"publisher":"Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)","issue":"13","content-domain":{"domain":["www.ahajournals.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["JAHA"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec xml:lang=\"en\">\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p xml:lang=\"en\">Neuroinflammation is a central pathological process in cerebral ischemia\/reperfusion injury. Electroacupuncture has demonstrated neuroprotective potential in ischemic stroke; however, whether electroacupuncture engages a defined central cholinergic anti\u2010inflammatory reflex to regulate microglial phenotype remains unknown.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec xml:lang=\"en\">\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p xml:lang=\"en\">A rat model of middle cerebral artery occlusion\/reperfusion was employed. Low\u2010intensity electroacupuncture was applied to the acupoints Large Iintestine 10 and Stomach 36 immediately after reperfusion. Neurological deficits and structural damage were assessed using neurological behavioral scores, 2,3,5\u2010triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining, and hematoxylin and eosin staining. Western blot, immunofluorescence, quantitative real\u2010time polymerase chain reaction, and ELISA were used to evaluate \u03b17nAChR (\u03b17 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor) expression, microglial phenotypic markers, and TLR4\/NF\u2010\u03baB (toll\u2010like receptor 4\/nuclear factor kappa B) pathway activity. Functional validation was performed using the \u03b17nAChR antagonist \u03b1\u2010BGT (\u03b1\u2010bungarotoxin) and subdiaphragmatic vagotomy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec xml:lang=\"en\">\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p xml:lang=\"en\">Electroacupuncture intervention significantly improved neurological function scores, reduced infarct volumes in middle cerebral artery occlusion\/reperfusion rats. Electroacupuncture upregulated \u03b17nAChR expression in the ischemic penumbra, primarily localized to microglia, and this effect was abolished by vagotomy. Eelectroacupuncture suppressed the TLR4\/MyD88 (myeloid differentiation primary response 88)\/NF\u2010\u03baB signaling pathway in an \u03b17nAChR\u2010dependent manner and shifted microglial polarization from a proinflammatory phenotype toward an anti\u2010inflammatory phenotype. These effects were reversed by \u03b1\u2010BGT and subdiaphragmatic vagotomy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec xml:lang=\"en\">\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p xml:lang=\"en\">This study elucidates that low\u2010intensity electroacupuncture alleviates neuroinflammation following cerebral ischemia\/reperfusion injury by activating the vagus nerve\u2013\u03b17nAChR axis, which negatively regulates the TLR4\/NF\u2010\u03baB pathway and drives microglial polarization toward an anti\u2010inflammatory phenotype. These findings identify the vagus nerve\u2013\u03b17nAChR axis as a critical neuroimmune pathway underlying electroacupuncture\u2010mediated neuroprotection and suggest that targeted neuromodulation of this axis may represent a promising adjunctive strategy for ischemic stroke therapy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1161\/jaha.126.049344","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,3]],"date-time":"2026-07-03T10:19:35Z","timestamp":1783073975000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1161\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Electroacupuncture Attenuates Cerebral Ischemia\u2013Reperfusion Injury via Vagus Nerve\u2013\u03b17 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor\u2013Dependent Microglial Polarization"],"prefix":"10.1161","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-5892-7614","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jing\u2010Yuan","family":"Niu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"General 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