Objective To analyze the effects of acupuncture on cerebral blood flow and behavioral recovery in rats with acute ischemic stroke based on PARP-1/AIF signaling pathway. Methods The rats were divided into SHAM group, model group, acupuncture group and acupuncture+PJ34 group, with 10 rats in each group. Animal models were established except sham group. The rats in acupuncture group and acupuncture +PJ34 group were treated with acupuncture, and the parP-1 inhibitor PJ34 was intraperitoneally injected with 10μmoL/g. Sham group and model group were injected 0.9% normal saline with the same volume without acupuncture intervention. Behavioral scores after modeling, intervention 1d, intervention 2D and intervention 3D were evaluated by 11-point single-blind score. The pia microcirculation blood flow was recorded by doppler probe. HE staining was used to observe the pathological morphology of brain tissue. TUNEL assay was used to detect the apoptosis rate of nerve cells in each group. Immunohistochemistry detected positive expression of Bax and Bcl-2. Western blot was used to detect the protein content of PARP-1 and AIF.Results After modeling, the behavioral scores of the model group, the acupuncture group and the acupuncture +PJ34 group increased, which was different from that of the SHAM group (P＜0.05)Compared with the model group, the behavioral scores of the acupuncture group decreased on the first day, the second day and the third day of intervention (P＜0.05)The behavioral scores of the acupuncture +PJ34 group decreased at the above time. There was a difference between acupuncture group and acupuncture group (P＜0.05)The pia meningiae microcirculation blood flow of Sham group, model group, acupuncture group and acupuncture +PJ34 group were (756.35±102.33) AU, (233.06±45.17) AU, (416.40±63.55) AU and (560.80±72.04) AU, respectively, with differences (F=90.390, P＜0.001). The brain tissue and nerve cells of sham group were arranged neatly, the brain tissue of model group was disordered and the number of nerve cells was reduced, the nerve cells of acupuncture group and acupuncture +OJ34 group were more survived and arranged neatly. The apoptosis rates of Sham group, model group, acupuncture group and acupuncture +PJ34 group were (3.30±0.21) %, (30.04±4.52) %, (16.30±2.25) % and (11.69±1.33) %, respectively (F=90.390, P＜0.001)Compared with sham group, the number of Bax positive cells in model group was decreased, while the number of Bcl-2 positive cells, PARP-1 and AIF protein were increased (P＜0.05). Compared with model group, the number of Bax positive cells, PARP-1 and AIF protein in acupuncture group and acupuncture +PJ34 group was decreased, while the bcl-2 positive, PARP-1 and AIF protein were increased (P＜0.05)There were differences in above indexes between acupuncture group and acupuncture +PJ34 group (P＜0.05)Conclusion Acupuncture can improve behavior, increase cerebral blood flow irrigation and reduce neuronal apoptosis by regulating apoptosis factors in rats with acute ischemic stroke. The mechanism may be related to inhibiting the activities of PARP-1 and AIF