The Effect of Electroacupuncture on Osteosarcoma Tumor Growth and Metastasis: Analysis of Different Treatment Regimens
Figure 3
Representative photomicrographs of fluorescent immunohistochemical staining for blood vessels (CD31, green staining) and nerves (PGP9.5, blue staining) in the core (a) and periphery (b) of the hind paw tumor. Images were taken at 40x and 100x with an MRC 1024 Confocal/Multiphoton Imaging System (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA). The scale bar in (a) represents 50 μm, while the scale bar in (b) represents 20 μm. Graphs illustrating the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) given twice per week beginning PID 3 (EA-2X/3) or PID 7 (EA-2X/7) on hind paw (c) vasculature and (d) innervation in male animals. EA-2X treatment produced a significant decrease in both blood vessel density and nerve fiber density in the core of the hind paw tumor as compared to the EA-2X/7 treated group and the Tumor-No EA control group (/group). Both EA-2X/3 and EA-2X/7 elicited significant reductions in innervation density in the periphery of the tumor, although EA-2X was more robust (/group). Data are shown as mean % response ± SEM, *, **, and *** as compared to the Tumor-No EA control group. Positive CD31 (blood vessel) immunostaining is indicated by the double arrows () in (a) and (b), while PGP9.5 (nerve fiber) immunostaining is indicated by single arrows ().
