Mol Pain
-
The transition from pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype to anti-inflammatory M2 phenotype presents a novel therapeutic strategy for chronic pain. ⋯ P2X7 receptor-mediated spinal microglia polarization is involved in alleviation of CIBP. Therefore, P2X7R is a potential option for CIBP treatment.
-
Gout is a prevalent and painful inflammatory arthritis, and its global burden continues to rise. Intense pain induced by gout attacks is a major complication of gout. However, systematic studies of gout inflammation and pain are lacking. ⋯ Furthermore, we investigated the common and distinct transcriptomic features of gouty, inflammatory pain, and neuropathic pain mouse models in their DRG and spinal cord tissues. Moreover, we discovered distinct sets of genes with significant differential alternative splicing or differential transcript usage in each tissue, which were largely not detected by conventional differential gene expression analysis approaches. Based on these results, our study provided a more accurate and comprehensive depiction of transcriptomic alterations related to gout inflammation and pain.
-
Prior studies identified iron deposition in deep brain nuclei and the periaqueductal gray matter region in chronic migraine, and less is known about the cerebral iron deposition over the whole cerebral gray matter in CM. The aim of this case-control study is to investigate the cerebral iron deposition of gray matter in CM using an advanced quantitative susceptibility mapping. ⋯ CM patients had increased iron deposition in total cerebral gray matter which could be considered as a potential diagnostic and evaluated imaging biomarker in CM.
-
Phantom tooth pain (PTP) is a rare and specific neuropathic pain that occurs after pulpectomy and tooth extraction, but its cause is not understood. We hypothesized that there is a genetic contribution to PTP. We focused on solute carrier family 17 member 9 (SLC17A9)/vesicular nucleotide transporter (VNUT) and purinergic receptor P2Y12 (P2RY12), both of which have been associated with neuropathic pain and pain transduction signaling in the trigeminal ganglion in rodents. ⋯ Therefore, these carriers may be more susceptible to PTP. These results suggest that specific genetic polymorphisms of the SLC17A9 and P2RY12 genes are involved in PTP. This is the first report on genes that are associated with PTP in humans.
-
Nervous system manifestations caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are of great concern. Neurological symptoms and the neurological effects induced by SARS-CoV-2, such as the loss of various sensory perceptions, indicate direct viral invasion into sensory neurons. Therefore, it is very important to identify the distribution of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), the receptor of SARS-CoV-2, in human nervous system. ⋯ We demonstrated that Sudan Black B (SBB) remarkably reduced the massive lipofuscin-like autofluorescence and the immunofluorescence signal would be sharpened following the exposure compensation. Additionally, we confirmed that ACE2 was expressed in IB4+, CGRP+, and NF200+ sensory subpopulations. The mapping of ACE2 distribution in hDRG would facilitate the understanding of sensory disorder induced by SARS-CoV-2.