Targeting TRPV1 for Body Weight Control using TRPV1(−/−) Mice and Electroacupuncture

Obesity is a global social medical problem resulting in morbidity as high as 20–30%. Here we investigated whether the manipulation of TRPV1 can control mice body weight through electroacupuncture (EA). The results demonstrated that body weight increased with time in the control group (108.19 ± 1.31%, n = 7). The increase of mice body weight was significantly less in the EA group (104.41 ± 0.76%, p < 0.05, compared with the control group, n = 7) but not in the sham EA group (109.1 ± 0.63%, p < 0.05, compared with EA group, n = 7). EA did not decrease the gain of body weight in TRPV1 knock mice (107.94 ± 0.41% and 107.79 ± 1.04% for TRPV1(−/−) and TRPV1(−/−) with EA, respectively, p > 0.05). The visceral white adipose tissue (WAT) weight was lower in the EA group at 4 weeks after manipulation. Moreover, the protein levels of TRPV1, pPKA, pPKC, and pERK were increased in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and spinal cord (SC) after EA treatment but not in the sham EA and TRPV1(−/−) mice. This study suggests that targeting TRPV1 is beneficial in controlling body weight and TRPV1-associated mechanisms in mice.