Key Finding
Acupuncture at GB34, ST36, and ST35 significantly reduced knee cartilage degeneration and systemic inflammation in KOA rats by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway and restoring chondrocyte autophagy, with combined acupuncture and exercise therapy producing superior results over either treatment alone.
Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a painful condition where the cartilage cushioning your knee joint gradually breaks down, leading to stiffness, swelling, and reduced mobility. Millions of people worldwide live with this condition, and researchers are actively exploring natural therapies that can slow or reverse cartilage damage.
A recent study published in Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion investigated whether acupuncture could protect knee cartilage in rats with KOA — and the results were encouraging. Researchers divided 40 rats into five groups: a healthy control group, an untreated KOA group, a suspension exercise group, an acupuncture group, and a combined therapy group. The acupuncture group received needling at three well-known knee-related points — Yanglingquan (GB34), Zusanli (ST36), and Dubi (ST35) — for 30 minutes daily over four weeks.
Compared to untreated KOA rats, the acupuncture group showed thicker, healthier cartilage with better-organized cells. Inflammation markers in the blood — including IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α — dropped significantly. Acupuncture also appeared to activate a natural cell-cleaning process called autophagy, which helps cartilage cells repair and renew themselves. These effects were linked to changes in a key biological pathway known as PI3K/Akt/mTOR, which plays an important role in cell survival and inflammation.
Notably, the group receiving both acupuncture and suspension exercise showed the greatest improvements across all measures, suggesting that combining movement therapy with acupuncture may offer the best outcomes for knee health.
While this study was conducted in animals and more human research is needed, the findings add to a growing body of evidence supporting acupuncture as a meaningful complementary approach for osteoarthritis. If you are managing knee pain, speak with a licensed acupuncture practitioner to explore whether this therapy may be appropriate for your individual needs.
This controlled animal study (n=40 male SD rats) examined acupuncture's effect on chondrocyte autophagy in a papain-induced KOA model, with interventions at GB34, ST36, and ST35 (30 min/day) over four weeks. Compared to untreated KOA controls, the acupuncture group demonstrated significantly reduced Lequesne MG and Mankin scores (P<0.01), decreased serum IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α (P<0.01), upregulated COL2 and Beclin-1 mRNA and protein expression (P<0.01), and downregulated COL10, PI3K, Akt, mTOR mRNA alongside reduced phosphorylated PI3K, Akt, and mTOR protein levels (P<0.01). A combined acupuncture-plus-suspension-exercise group outperformed either monotherapy across all key metrics (P<0.05–0.01). The mechanism appears to involve inhibition of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, thereby restoring chondrocyte autophagy and reducing inflammatory-driven cartilage degradation. Clinically, these findings support multimodal protocols pairing acupuncture with therapeutic exercise for KOA management.
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