Articles: hyperalgesia-pathology.
-
It has been reported that remarkable and sustained activation of astrocytes and/or microglia occurs in cancer induced pain (CIP), which is different from neuropathic and inflammatory pain. The present study was designed to investigate the role of spinal Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) induced glial neuroinflammation in cancer induced pain using a modified rat model of bone cancer. The rat model of CIP consisted of unilateral intra-tibial injection with Walker 256 mammary gland carcinoma. ⋯ Naloxone (a nonstereoselective TLR4 signaling blocker, 60 μg, i.t.) also significantly alleviated mechanical allodynia and simultaneously blocked the increased inflammatory cytokine mRNA. The results suggested that spinal TLR4 might play an important role in the sustained glial activation that critically contributed to the robust and sustained spinal neuroinflammation in CIP. This result could potentially help clinicians and researchers to better understand the mechanism of complicated cancer pain.
-
Oxaliplatin is an important drug used in the treatment of colorectal cancer. However, it frequently causes severe acute and chronic peripheral neuropathies. We recently reported that repeated administration of oxaliplatin induced cold hyperalgesia in the early phase and mechanical allodynia in the late phase in rats, and that oxalate derived from oxaliplatin is involved in the cold hyperalgesia. In the present study, we examined the effects of Ca²⁺ channel blockers on oxaliplatin-induced cold hyperalgesia in rats. ⋯ These data suggest that the L type Ca²⁺ channels/NFAT/TRPM8 pathway is a downstream mediator for oxaliplatin-induced cold hyperalgesia, and that Ca²⁺ channel blockers have prophylactic potential for acute neuropathy.
-
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is associated with both acute vaso-occlusive painful events as well as chronic pain syndromes, including heightened sensitivity to touch. We have previously shown that mice with severe SCD (HbSS mice; express 100% human sickle hemoglobin in red blood cells; RBCs) have sensitized nociceptors, which contribute to increased mechanical sensitivity. Yet, the hypersensitivity in these neural populations alone may not fully explain the mechanical allodynia phenotype in mouse and humans. ⋯ These novel findings demonstrate mice with severe SCD exhibit mechanical allodynia to both punctate and dynamic light touch and suggest that this behavioral phenotype may be mediated in part by the sensitization of light touch cutaneous afferent fibers to suprathreshold force. These findings indicate that Aβ fibers can be sensitized to mechanical force and should potentially be examined for sensitization in other tissue injury and disease models.
-
Inflammation is a part of the body's natural response to tissue injury which initiates the healing process. Unfortunately, inflammation is frequently painful and leads to hypersensitivity to mechanical stimuli, which is difficult to treat clinically. While it is well established that altered sensory processing in the spinal cord contributes to mechanical hypersensitivity (central sensitization), it is still debated whether primary afferent neurons become sensitized to mechanical stimuli after tissue inflammation. ⋯ Further, we pharmacologically anesthetized the TRPA1-expressing fibers in vivo by co-injecting the membrane-impermeable sodium channel inhibitor QX-314 and the TRPA1 agonist cinnamaldehyde into the hind paw. This approach also alleviated behavioral mechanical hyperalgesia in inflamed mice but left heat hypersensitivity intact. Our findings indicate that C-Mechano Cold sensitive fibers exhibit enhanced firing to suprathreshold mechanical stimuli in a TRPA1-dependent manner during inflammation, and that input from these fibers drives mechanical hyperalgesia in inflamed mice.
-
Opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH) is a paradoxical increase in pain perception that may manifest during opioid treatment. For morphine, the metabolite morphine-3-glucuronide (M3G) is commonly believed to underlie this phenomenon. Here, in three separate studies, we empirically assess the role of M3G in morphine-induced hyperalgesia. ⋯ Mrp3(-/-) mice displayed a significantly reduced capacity to export M3G into the systemic circulation, with plasma M3G concentrations just 7% of those observed in FVB controls. The data confirm previous literature that morphine causes hyperalgesia in the absence of opioid receptor activation but also indicate that this hyperalgesia may occur without a significant contribution of hepatic M3G. The relevance of these data to humans has yet to be demonstrated.