Acupuncture on the Endometrial Morphology, the Serum Estradiol and Progesterone Levels, and the Expression of Endometrial Leukaemia-inhibitor Factor and Osteopontin in Rats

Although it is well known that acupuncture has beneficial effects on a variety of medical conditions especially in pain relief, nausea, and vomiting, it remains controversial whether it has positive impact on the female reproduction. The present study aimed to evaluate whether the following endometrial receptivity factors: the endometrial morphology, the hormone concentrations, and the protein expression of endometrial leukaemia-inhibitory factor (LIF) and osteopontin (OPN) could be improved by the acupuncture in clomiphene citrate(CC)-induced rat model during implantation period. Results showed that, compared with the CC group, glandular development advanced, the serum estradiol levels decreased significantly, and the glandular area and endometrial LIF and OPN expression were significantly higher in acupuncture group. There were no significant differences in serum progesterone levels, endometrial thickness, and stromal area between groups. These results suggest that acupuncture can improve certain aspects of endometrial receptivity in CC-induced rat model during implantation period, which might result in endometrial state better to female reproduction.