Synaptic mechanisms of pain relief by increasing inhibitory transmission in the spinal dorsal horn

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K08679
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Pain science
• Research Institution: Kitasato University
• Principal Investigator: Tanabe Mitsuo 北里大学, 薬学部, 教授 (20360026)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 神経障害性疼痛 / シナプス伝達 / 脊髄スライス / パッチクランプ / グリシントランスポーター / GABAトランスポーター

Outline of Final Research Achievements

An excessive excitation due to disinhibition in the superficial dorsal horn is considered to contribute to hyperalgesia and allodynia of chronic pain conditions including neuropathic and inflammatory pain. Normalizing excitatory and inhibitory balance in the dorsal horn is a possible strategy to develop a novel therapeutic drug for chronic pain. Pharmacological blockade of spinal glycine and GABA transporters (GlyTs and GATs, respectively) was reported to produce analgesic effects in animal models of chronic pain. In this study, we investigated the effects of GlyT and GAT inhibitors on excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission in the dorsal horn in slices prepared from adult mice by using the whole-cell voltage-clamp technique. and tried to explore synaptic mechanisms of pain relief by GlyT and GAT inhibitors.

Free Research Field

神経薬理学