3D rendering of human dural lymphatics (curtesy of elifesciences.org)
The latest discovery and location of a lymphatic system in the brain may explain how neuro-acupuncture works in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurodegenerative diseases.
The lymphatic system of the body circulates and filters the fluid that bathes body cells to remove toxins and fight infection. Brain cells, just like body cells, produce waste products as a result of their metabolic functioning but no brain lymphatic system had been found until most recently. In October 2017 researchers at the U.S. National Institute Neurological Disorder and Stroke published their discovery of a system of lymphatic vessels that are embedded in the dura mata, the leathery membrane that covers the brain. The senior researcher of the group, Daniel Reich, is an expert in inflammatory brain disease, specifically multiple sclerosis (MS). An important element in MS as well as other neurodegenerative disease may be a failure in the brain lymphatic system. So maintaining healthy functioning of the brain lymphatic system may help prevent and treat these diseases.
The dura mater that contains the brain lymphatic vessels lies next to the boney skull. In neuro-acupuncture, pins are inserted in the scalp to stimulate the underlying brain cells in the area. But even before the stimulation reaches the brain cells it has to pass through the dura mata and in doing so stimulating the brain lymphatic system there. This is probably one important way neuro-acupuncture creates its effects: promoting immunity and waste-removal functions in the brain.