Acupuncture Navigates the Drug to the Diseased Region

Abstract The integration of acupuncture and medication is a common treatment approach in clinical practice in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). During our investigation of the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of combined acupuncture and medication, we unexpectedly found that acupuncture at specific acupoints associated with target organs could markedly increase drug concentrations in those organs. Based on these findings and related studies, we proposed a novel concept: “acupuncture navigates the drug to the diseased region.” Traditional targeting concepts in TCM, such as the meridian–viscera correlation and the notion of Qi reaching the disease site, provide important theoretical support for this new theory of acupuncture-guided drug delivery. Acupuncture may regulate blood flow in target organs, alter vascular permeability, influence drug transport proteins, and modulate the secretion of exosomes. We summarize these effects as “acupuncture navigation and medication for disease treatment.” These mechanisms may represent potential pathways through which acupuncture increases drug concentrations in target organs and enhances their therapeutic effects. The potential mechanisms of action are summarized herein.