Objective: Acupuncture combined with moxibustion (AM) therapy has been applied to treat spinal cord injury (SCI), but the underlying mechanism is unclear. The present study aimed to confirm the effect and mechanism of AM treatment on the recovery of SCI.

Design: Male Sprague–Dawley rats were used to establish the SCI model by impact method. SCI rat models were subjected to AM treatment at Dazhui (GV14) and Jiaji points (T7-T12), Yaoyangguan (GV3), Zusanli (ST36) and Ciliao (BL32).

Outcome measures: Motor function and cell apoptosis in rats after SCI. The mRNA and protein expression levels of Shh and Gli-1 were determined by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blot and immunohistochemistry.

Results: After AM treatment, the hindlimb motor function of SCI rats was significantly increased than the SCI group at 7, 9, 11, 14 days (P < 0.05). AM treatment 7 d and 14 d significantly preserved the nissl-stained positive neurons and significantly decreased number of apoptotic cells, compared to that of SCI 7 and 14 d groups (P < 0.05). AM treatment improved the mRNA protein levels of Shh and Gli-1 after 7 and 14 days treatment compared to the SCI group (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: AM could improve the expression of Shh and Gli-1 in injured spinal cord of rats. That could be part of underlying mechanisms of AM treatment including recover motor function and preserve the neuron cells and alleviate the apoptosis of nerve cells in rats after SCI.

目的：针灸结合疗法已应用于治疗脊髓损伤（SCI），但其作用机制尚不清楚。本研究旨在证实 AM 治疗对 SCI 恢复的影响和机制。

设计：雄性 Sprague-Dawley 大鼠通过冲击法建立 SCI 模型。SCI大鼠模型分别在大椎（GV14）和夹积穴（T7-T12）、腰阳关（GV3）、足三里（ST36）和刺辽（ BL32 ）进行AM处理。

结果测量：脊髓损伤后大鼠的运动功能和细胞凋亡。通过实时定量聚合酶链反应、蛋白质印迹和免疫组织化学测定 Shh 和 Gli-1 的 mRNA 和蛋白表达水平。

结果： AM治疗后7、9、11、14天SCI大鼠后肢运动功能较SCI组明显增强（P < 0.05）。与 SCI 7 d 和 14 d 组相比，AM 处理 7 d 和 14 d 显着保留了 nissl 染色的阳性神经元并显着减少了凋亡细胞的数量（P < 0.05）。与 SCI 组相比，AM 治疗 7 天和 14 天后，Shh 和 Gli-1 的 mRNA 蛋白水平得到改善（P < 0.05）。

结论： AM可改善大鼠损伤脊髓中Shh和Gli-1的表达。这可能是 AM 治疗潜在机制的一部分，包括恢复运动功能、保护神经元细胞和减轻 SCI 后大鼠神经细胞的凋亡。