Electrified acupuncture shown to help ease gut issues in Parkinson’s mice

New research links disease's digestive problems to reduced nerve cell activity

Written by Marisa Horak, MS | Aug. 25, 2026

• Digestive problems in Parkinson's are linked to decreased nerve cell activity in the brain, new research in animals suggests.
• Electrified acupuncture applied at a specific point below the knee was shown to restore nerve cell activity and ease gut issues in mouse models.
• More preclinical studies are needed to move this strategy toward testing in people with Parkinson's, the researchers noted.

Digestive problems in Parkinson’s disease may be explained by the reduced activity of a specific type of nerve cells, called cholinergic neurons, in a particular brain region that helps regulate unconscious body functions, including digestion, a new study using a mouse model suggests.

The scientists say diminished activity of these neurons in that brain region, called the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus, may slow the movement of food through the body, known as gut motility.

But new research in the animal models suggests that electroacupuncture — a type of acupuncture in which an electric charge is delivered through the needle — can restore the normal activity of these nerve cells and improve gut motility. In the mice, the electroacupuncture was applied at a specific point just below the knee.

“These findings highlight a circuit-specific mechanism and a promising neuromodulatory strategy for treating this debilitating gut symptom of [Parkinson’s],” the researchers wrote.

Still, more preclinical studies are needed before this treatment can be tested in people with the neurodegenerative disease, the team noted.

The study, “Impaired brain-gut circuit for gut motility dysfunction in mouse models of Parkinson’s disease,” was published in the journal Cell Reports.

In all humans, the digestive system is surrounded by muscles that help to push food through it. People with Parkinson’s, however, often experience gut dysmotility, where the movement of food through the digestive tract is slowed. This can result in problems such as constipation, which is a common nonmotor symptom of the disease.