On the basis of the previous observed sympathetic-substance lines(SSL),the mechanism of pilomoter line and hyperaemia of the skin after acupuncture in the rats is explored.When the pilomoter line is formed by the hypodermic injection of phenylepherine at SSL,the skin at the line is transversely severed 2-3()cm wide.In the middle of the section below the line,the thickness of the skin increases as a half-moon.It formes by edma in the hypodermis.The skin samples at the line are cut off and sliced by ice-section.The section is dyed with thionin staining and observed by a microscope.The mast cell is specific stained.A lot of granules in the mast cell are being released out.When the rat is injected with sodium cromoglicate(10()mg) to inhibit the release of the mast cell,the subcutaneous injection of phenylepherine can not produce obvious pilomoter line.As a sum,the pilomoter line and the hyperaemia along the SSL is companied with hypodermis edma and formed and /or enhanced by the release of the mast cell.Thus the mast cell must should play very important physiological function in the mechanism of acupuncture and normal states of the body.
The morphological structure of Jinlo (or Meridian)--a hypothesis of sympathetic sensitive lines along skin is studied. At first, sympathetic substance lines(SSL) are displayed by macro autoradiography with 125 I tyrosine tracer. The lines are continuous from head to feet, symmetric in the left and right and connect each other in the head and feet to form loops. When the upper back skin where the SSL passed is severed, the effect of acupuncture analgesia produced by stimulating acupoints in the hindlimb is blocked significantly. Moreover, the SSL are proved coming from the dense adrenergic nerve endings innervating arrector pili muscles observed by fluorescent microscopy. As a conclusion, the hair follicles and its arrector pili muscles along the SSL are the morphological structure of Jinlo and act as dynamic target organs for long distance transmission of messages. Secondly, the rats hair are sheared as 12～16 rings from head to leg. Acupuncture and injection of phenylephrine at back skin along SSL produce pilomotor lines from hip to cheek, which is identical with SSL. Finally, after shaving all rat hairs, the first wave of hair growth distributes along lines and loops, which is identical with SSL. Thus live animal model is moken for displaying the Jinlo lines along rat skin.
