Study on the anti-inflammatory mechanism of medicinal cake-partitioned moxibustion in atherosclerosis treatment based on the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway

Key Points

• This research investigates how medicinal cake-partitioned moxibustion affects inflammation and related molecules in atherosclerosis treatment.
• Created atherosclerosis model using ApoE-/- mice
• Divided groups into model, placebo, and moxibustion treatment
• Conducted HE staining, ELISA, immunofluorescence, and Western blot analysis
• Mice showed thickening of the vascular intima and plaque formation with increased lipids and inflammatory factors
• Moxibustion group had reduced plaque prominence with lower lipid and inflammatory factor levels
• The expression levels of Ub, proteasome 20S, and NF-κB/p65 decreased significantly in the moxibustion group compared to the model group