Integrative Approaches in Traditional Chinese Medicine: Mechanistic Insights into Neural Repair and Osteoarticular Regeneration

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) integrates multimodal interventions,such as acupuncture, manual therapy, and herbal medicine, to address complex disorders involving neural degeneration, skeletal injury, and musculoskeletal impairment. In clinical practice, Osteoarthritis (OA) is a long-term degenerative joint condition marked by the breakdown of articular cartilage, changes in subchondral bone, and ongoing pain with functional limitations,and peripheral nerve injury is a common medical problem that can be caused by sharp instruments, firearms, stretching or compression. it affects over one million people worldwide annually, making it a global clinical issue with a substantial socioeconomic cost. This study synthesizes evidence from three investigations: (1) Electroacupuncture (EA) at GB30/ST36 alleviates sciatic nerve injury by suppressing autophagy in rats; (2) Meridian-based manual therapy improves shoulder mobility and modulates serum inflammatory cytokines (e.g., IL-10, TGF-β, TNF-α) in frozen shoulder patients; (3) Huangqi Guizhi Wuwu Decoction (HGWD) promotes osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) via ESR1 upregulation. These findings highlight autophagy regulation, immunomodulation, and stem cell differentiation as key mechanistic pathways through which TCM modalities exert their reparative effects. Collectively, these findings bridge traditional TCM practices with modern molecular insights, emphasizing autophagy regulation, immune response modulation, and stem cell differentiation as convergent therapeutic pathways. These results advocate for TCM integration into evidence-based regenerative medicine. This integrative approach not only deepens the scientific understanding of TCM mechanisms but also supports its clinical application in managing complex musculoskeletal and neurological conditions, offering promising avenues for developing novel treatment strategies that combine traditional wisdom with contemporary biomedical research.