Mol Pain
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Small fiber neuropathy is a painful sensory nervous system disorder characterized by damage to unmyelinated C- and thinly myelinated Aδ- nerve fibers, clinically manifested by burning pain in the distal extremities and dysautonomia. The clinical onset in adulthood suggests a time-dependent process. ⋯ In the present study, we report time-dependent degeneration of neurites from dorsal root ganglia neurons in culture expressing small fiber neuropathy-associated G856D mutant Nav1.7 channels and demonstrate a time-dependent increase in intracellular calcium levels [Ca2+]i and reactive oxygen species, together with a decrease in ATP levels. Together with a previous clinical report of burning pain in the feet and hands associated with reduced levels of Na+/K+-ATPase in humans with high altitude sickness, the present results link energetic stress and reactive oxygen species production with the development of a painful neuropathy that preferentially affects small-diameter axons.
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Optogenetic tools enable cell selective and temporally precise control of neuronal activity; yet, difficulties in delivering sufficient light to the spinal cord of freely behaving animals have hampered the use of spinal optogenetic approaches to produce analgesia. We describe an epidural optic fiber designed for chronic spinal optogenetics that enables the precise delivery of light at multiple wavelengths to the spinal cord dorsal horn and sensory afferents. ⋯ Epidural optogenetics provides a robust and powerful solution for activation of both excitatory and inhibitory opsins in sensory processing pathways. Our results demonstrate the potential of spinal optogenetics to modulate sensory behavior and produce analgesia in freely behaving animals.
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The N-methyl-D-aspartate subtype of glutamate receptor plays a critical role in morphine tolerance. D-serine, a co-agonist of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, participates in many physiological and pathophysiological processes via regulating N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor activation. The purinergic P2X7 receptor activation can induce the D-serine release in the central nervous system. This study aimed to investigate the role of the ventrolateral midbrain periaqueductal gray D-serine in the mechanism of morphine tolerance in rats. The development of morphine tolerance was induced in normal adult male Sprague-Dawley rats through subcutaneous injection of morphine (10 mg/kg). The analgesic effect of morphine (5 mg/kg, i.p.) was assessed by measuring mechanical withdrawal thresholds in rats with an electronic von Frey anesthesiometer. The D-serine concentration and serine racemase expression levels in the ventrolateral midbrain periaqueductal gray were evaluated through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blot analysis, respectively. The effects of intra-ventrolateral midbrain periaqueductal gray injections of the D-serine degrading enzyme D-amino acid oxidase and antisense oligodeoxynucleotide targeting the P2X7 receptor on chronic morphine-treated rats were also explored. ⋯ Our data indicate that the development of antinociceptive tolerance to morphine is partially mediated by ventrolateral midbrain periaqueductal gray D-serine content, and the activation of the ventrolateral midbrain periaqueductal gray P2X7 receptor is an essential prelude to D-serine release. These results suggest that a cascade involving P2X7 receptor-D-serine-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor mediated signaling pathway in the supraspinal mechanism of morphine tolerance.
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Methadone is a unique µ-opioid receptor agonist. Although several researchers have insisted that the pharmacological effects of methadone are mediated through the blockade of NMDA receptor, the underlying mechanism by which methadone exerts its distinct pharmacological effects compared to those of other µ-opioid receptor agonists is still controversial. In the present study, we further investigated the pharmacological profile of methadone compared to those of fentanyl and morphine as measured mainly by the discriminative stimulus effect and in vitro assays for NMDA receptor binding, µ-opioid receptor-internalization, and µ-opioid receptor-mediated β-arrestin recruitment. ⋯ These results suggest that methadone may, at least partly, produce its pharmacological effect as a β-arrestin-biased µ-opioid receptor agonist, similar to fentanyl, and NMDA receptor blockade is not the main contributor to the pharmacological profile of methadone.
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Autism spectrum disorder is a debilitating mental illness and social issue. Autism spectrum disorder patients suffer from social isolation, cognitive deficits, compulsive behavior, and sensory deficits, including hyposensitivity to pain. ⋯ Recently, Shank gene family was reported as one of the genetic risk factors of autism spectrum disorder. Thus, in this study, we used Shank2(-) (/) (-) (Shank2 knock-out, KO) mice to investigate the controversial pain sensitivity issue and found that Shank2 KO mice showed reduced tactile perception and analgesia to chronic pain.