Written by over seventy scientists and clinicians worldwide from China, USA, Germany, Canada, Japan and other countries, this monograph, with nearly 450 figures and tables, covers a wide range of advanced progress in acupuncture research, from experimental research to clinical applications. In addition to exploring the histopathological basis for acupuncture and mathematical simulation of acupoint response to stimulation, initiation and transduction of acupuncture signals and cellular mechanisms during acupuncture effects as well as chemical and physical characteristics of moxibustion on acupoints are broadly discussed. The topics also include novel data on acupuncture effect with advanced imaging techniques, a unique understanding of meridian-viscera correlation, specific interactions between meridians and neurosensory organs within the system of homeostatic regulation and the acupuncture-induced influences on autonomic function. Several chapters introduce specific approaches with dry needling, silver needling and stainless needling for certain diseases, such as myofascitis, supportive care for breast cancer and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy as well as perioperative care of surgical patients. Moreover, this book discusses recent research on acupuncture therapy and potential mechanisms for a number of severe and refractory neurological disorders, including hyperactivity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, orofacial pain, chronic pain, itch, multiple sclerosis, autism spectrum disorders, cerebral palsy, depressive disorders, Alzheimer's disease and ischemic brain injury. The vast amount of information offered in this book provides a comprehensive perspective on advanced acupuncture research to not only acupuncturists, but also to neuroscientists, neurologists, and other clinicians. For medical students and graduate and undergraduate students majoring in biology, physiology and neuroscience, this book offers an advanced course in learning about the mechanism-driven advances in alternative and complementary medicine.

Ying Xia is a Fudan Distinguished Professor at Fudan University, the Executive Director of Shanghai Key Laboratory of Acupuncture Mechanism and Acupoint Function, and Director of Molecular Neurology Laboratory at Shanghai Research Center for Acupuncture and Meridians, Shanghai, China. He obtained his medical training at Soochow Medical College, China. After being a clinical physician for almost 4 years, he pursued his graduate studies and obtained a Master Degree of Medicine and a Doctoral Degree of Medical Science (Ph.D.) in Neurobiology and Integrative Medicine at Shanghai Medical University (now Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University), China. He was then appointed as a lecturer of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology there. Dr. Xia joined Yale University School of Medicine in 1988 for his postdoctoral training and initiated his laboratory at Yale in 1994. During his 22-year-long academic career at Yale University School of Medicine, he was appointed as a faculty member in 1993 and promoted to Associate Professor in 2002. From May 2010 to August 2016, he worked at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston (now the University of Texas McGovern Medical School) and the University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston as a Full Professor, Chairman of Research and Promotion Committee, and Vice-chairman for Research in the Department of Neurosurgery. He joined Fudan University in September 2016.

Dr. Xia's early research focused on cardiovascular regulation, interactive modulation of endogenous opioids and other neurotransmitters, and acupuncture mechanism. His laboratory currently investigates neural functions of the delta-opioid receptor, neuroprotection against ischemic/hypoxic injury, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and acupuncture effects on neurological diseases (e.g., stroke, epilepsy, and hypoxic encephalopathy). His research has been consecutively supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH), American Heart Association, March of Dimes Foundation, Cerebral Palsy Foundation, The Vivian L. Smith Neurologic Foundation, Memorial Hermann Foundation, Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, and the National Natural Science Foundation of China since the establishment of his laboratory in 1994. He has been invited to deliver speeches by many academic institutions (e.g., NIH and Harvard University) and international conferences. He has been serving as a manuscript-reviewer for many international journals and as a grant reviewer for NIH, US National Science Foundation, other American foundations (e.g., American Heart Association; US Civilian Research and Development Foundation), European foundations (e.g., Scotland Medical Research of UK; Wellbeing of Women of UK; National Science Center of Poland), Hong Kong University Grants Committees, and National Natural Science Foundation of China. In 2020, he was awarded the First Sheikh Zayed International Award for Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM), along with Professor Youyou Tu, a Nobel Laureate and other prestigious scientists in the field of TCAM. He was awarded the Global Innovation Award of Science and Technology in 2021.