Objective To observe the effect of electroacupuncture(EA)on inositol triphosphate(IP3)and diacylglycerol(DAG)contents in cerebral arteries of the cerebral cortex in rats with cerebral ischemia(CI)

so as to explore its effect on intracellular signal transduction pathway.Methods Fifty-six Wistar rats were randomly divided into control(n=8)

CI(n=24)and EA(n=24)groups

and the later 2 groups were further separately divided into 1 h

3 h and 6 h subgroups(CI-1 h

CI-3 h

CI-6 h

EA-CI-1 h

EA-CI-3 h and EA-CI-6 h)

with 8 cases in each.CI model was made by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery.EA(15 Hz

0.1 mA)was applied to "Shuigou"(GV 26)for 20 min.The cerebral arteries in the cerebral shallow layer were collected for assaying intracellular DAG content by thin-layer chromatography(TLC)and IP3 content by competitive protein binding assay(CPBA).Results Compared with control group

the levels of IP3 and DAG in cerebral vascular smooth muscle were significantly increased in model 1 h

3 h and 6 h subgroups(P<0.01).Compared with the corresponding model subgroups

the levels of IP3 and DAG were significantly decreased in EA-CI-1 h

EA-CI-3 h and EA-CI-6 h subgroups(P<0.01).Conclusion EA of GV 26 can effectively inhibit CI-induced increase of intracellular IP3 and DAG levels in rat cerebral arteries

which may contribute to its effect in modulating vascular motor to ameliorate cerebral microcirculation.