scholarly journals The Role of Neuroglial Crosstalk and Synaptic Plasticity-Mediated Central Sensitization in Acupuncture Analgesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Zhongxi Lyu ◽  
Yongming Guo ◽  
Yinan Gong ◽  
Wen Fan ◽  
Baomin Dou ◽  
...  

Although pain is regarded as a global public health priority, analgesic therapy remains a significant challenge. Pain is a hypersensitivity state caused by peripheral and central sensitization, with the latter considered the culprit for chronic pain. This study summarizes the pathogenesis of central sensitization from the perspective of neuroglial crosstalk and synaptic plasticity and underlines the related analgesic mechanisms of acupuncture. Central sensitization is modulated by the neurotransmitters and neuropeptides involved in the ascending excitatory pathway and the descending pain modulatory system. Acupuncture analgesia is associated with downregulating glutamate in the ascending excitatory pathway and upregulating opioids, 𝛾-aminobutyric acid, norepinephrine, and 5-hydroxytryptamine in the descending pain modulatory system. Furthermore, it is increasingly appreciated that neurotransmitters, cytokines, and chemokines are implicated in neuroglial crosstalk and associated plasticity, thus contributing to central sensitization. Acupuncture produces its analgesic action by inhibiting cytokines, such as interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α, and upregulating interleukin-10, as well as modulating chemokines and their receptors such as CX3CL1/CX3CR1, CXCL12/CXCR4, CCL2/CCR2, and CXCL1/CXCR2. These factors are regulated by acupuncture through the activation of multiple signaling pathways, including mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling (e.g., the p38, extracellular signal-regulated kinases, and c-Jun-N-terminal kinase pathways), which contribute to the activation of nociceptive neurons. However, the responses of chemokines to acupuncture vary among the types of pain models, acupuncture methods, and stimulation parameters. Thus, the exact mechanisms require future clarification. Taken together, inhibition of central sensitization modulated by neuroglial plasticity is central in acupuncture analgesia, providing a novel insight for the clinical application of acupuncture analgesia.

2018 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bikash Sahay ◽  
Kathleen Bashant ◽  
Nicole L. J. Nelson ◽  
Rebeca L. Patsey ◽  
Shiva Kumar Gadila ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTHost genotype influences the severity of murine Lyme borreliosis, caused by the spirochetal bacteriumBorrelia burgdorferi. C57BL/6 (B6) mice develop mild Lyme arthritis, whereas C3H/HeN (C3H) mice develop severe Lyme arthritis. Differential expression of interleukin 10 (IL-10) has long been associated with mouse strain differences in Lyme pathogenesis; however, the underlying mechanism(s) of this genotype-specific IL-10 regulation remained elusive. Herein we reveal a cAMP-mediated mechanism of IL-10 regulation in B6 macrophages that is substantially diminished in C3H macrophages. Under cAMP and CD14-p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling, B6 macrophages stimulated withB. burgdorferiproduce increased amounts of IL-10 and decreased levels of arthritogenic cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF). cAMP relaxes chromatin, while p38 increases binding of the transcription factors signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and specific protein 1 (SP1) to the IL-10 promoter, leading to increased IL-10 production in B6 bone marrow-derived monocytes (BMDMs). Conversely, macrophages derived from arthritis-susceptible C3H mice possess significantly less endogenous cAMP, produce less IL-10, and thus are ill equipped to mitigate the damaging consequences ofB. burgdorferi-induced TNF. Intriguingly, an altered balance between anti-inflammatory and proinflammatory cytokines and CD14-dependent regulatory mechanisms also is operative in primary human peripheral blood-derived monocytes, providing potential insight into the clinical spectrum of human Lyme disease. In line with this notion, we have demonstrated that cAMP-enhancing drugs increase IL-10 production in myeloid cells, thus curtailing inflammation associated with murine Lyme borreliosis. Discovery of novel treatments or repurposing of FDA-approved cAMP-modulating medications may be a promising avenue for treatment of patients with adverse clinical outcomes, including certain post-Lyme complications, in whom dysregulated immune responses may play a role.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fumi Sato-Kaneko ◽  
Xiaodong Wang ◽  
Shiyin Yao ◽  
Tadashi Hosoya ◽  
Fitzgerald S. Lao ◽  
...  

For an activating immunotherapy such as adjuvants, a compound that can prolong immune stimulation may enhance efficacy. We leveraged data from two prior high throughput screens with NF-κB and interferon reporter cell lines to identify 4H-chromene-3-carbonitriles as a class of compounds that prolonged activation in both screens. We repurchased 23 of the most promising candidates. Out of these compounds we found #1 to be the most effective agent in stimulating the release of cytokines and chemokines from immune cells, including murine primary bone marrow derived dendritic cells. Mechanistically, #1 inhibited tubulin polymerization, and its effect on immune cell activation was abolished in cells mutated in the beta-tubulin gene (TUBB) encoding the site where colchicine binds. Treatment with #1 resulted in mitochondrial depolarization followed by mitogen-activated protein kinase activation. Because tubulin polymerization modulating agents have been used for chemotherapy to treat malignancy and #1 activated cytokine responses, we hypothesized that #1 could be effective for cancer immunotherapy. Intratumoral injection of #1 delayed tumor growth in a murine syngeneic model of head and neck cancer. When combined with PD-1 blockade, tumor growth slowed in the injected tumor nodule and there was an abscopal effect in an uninjected nodule on the contralateral flank, suggesting central antitumor immune activation. Thus, we identified a new class of tubulin depolymerizing agent that acts as both an innate and an adaptive immune activating agent and that limits solid tumor growth when used concurrently with a checkpoint inhibitor.


2004 ◽  
Vol 78 (17) ◽  
pp. 9376-9388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuo Nakamichi ◽  
Satoshi Inoue ◽  
Tomohiko Takasaki ◽  
Kinjiro Morimoto ◽  
Ichiro Kurane

ABSTRACT Macrophages represent an essential part of innate immunity, and the viral infection of macrophages results in the release of multiple proinflammatory mediators, such as nitric oxide (NO), cytokines, and chemokines. This study was undertaken to define the molecular mechanism of macrophage activation in response to rabies virus (RV) infection. In RAW264 murine macrophage cells, a well-characterized macrophage model, RV replication was strictly restricted, whereas cell proliferation was significantly enhanced upon RV inoculation. Transcriptional analyses for the expression of inducible forms of NO synthase (iNOS), cytokines, and chemokines revealed that RV virions potentiate the gene expression of iNOS and CXC chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10), a major chemoattractant of T helper cell type 1. However, RV stimulation had little or no effect on the expression profiles of proinflammatory cytokines and other types of chemokines. In macrophages stimulated with UV-inactivated RV virions, as well as infectious viruses, the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1 and 2, members of the mitogen-activated protein kinase family, was significantly induced. Specific inhibitors of MAPK/ERK kinase reduced the RV-induced production of NO and CXCL10. Furthermore, the RV-induced activation of the ERK1/2 pathway was severely impaired by the neutralization of the endosomal and lysosomal pH environment with lysosomotropic agents, indicating that endocytosis is a key step leading to the activation of ERK1/2 signaling. Taken together, these results suggest that the ERK1/2-mediated signaling pathway plays a cardinal role in the selective activation of macrophages in response to RV virions, thereby regulating cellular functions during virus infection.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Asrih ◽  
François Mach ◽  
Alessio Nencioni ◽  
Franco Dallegri ◽  
Alessandra Quercioli ◽  
...  

Metabolic syndrome has been widely associated with an increased risk for acute cardiovascular events. Emerging evidence supports metabolic syndrome as a condition favoring an adverse cardiac remodeling, which might evolve towards heart dysfunction and failure. This pathological remodeling has been described to result from the cardiac adaptive response to clinical mechanical conditions (such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia), soluble inflammatory molecules (such as cytokines and chemokines), as well as hormones (such as insulin), characterizing the pathophysiology of metabolic syndrome. Moreover, these cardiac processes (resulting in cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis) are also associated with the modulation of intracellular signalling pathways within cardiomyocytes. Amongst the different intracellular kinases, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) were shown to be involved in heart damage in metabolic syndrome. However, their role remains controversial. In this paper, we will discuss and update evidence on MAPK-mediated mechanisms underlying cardiac adverse remodeling associated with metabolic syndrome.


2009 ◽  
Vol 110 (6) ◽  
pp. 1379-1389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yueh-Hua Tai ◽  
Ru-Yin Tsai ◽  
Shinn-Long Lin ◽  
Chun-Chang Yeh ◽  
Jhi-Joung Wang ◽  
...  

Background This study explores the underlying mechanism of the antiinflammatory effect of amitriptyline in chronic morphine-infused rats. Methods Male Wistar rats were implanted with two intrathecal catheters. One catheter was for the continuous infusion of saline, amitriptyline (15 microg/h), morphine (15 microg/h), p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibitor SB203580 (0.5 microg/h), morphine plus amitriptyline, or morphine plus amitriptyline plus SB203580 for 5 days. The other catheter was used for daily intrathecal injection of anti-interleukin-10 (IL-10) antibody or heme oxygenase-1 inhibitor zinc protoporphyrin for 5 days. Results Amitriptyline/morphine coinfusion upregulated IL-10 protein expression in microglia; this was not observed in morphine-infused rats. Anti-IL-10 antibody effectively neutralized the amitriptyline-induced IL-10 expression in chronic morphine-infused rats. In addition, coinfusion of amitriptyline restored the antinociceptive effect of morphine (a 4.8-fold right-shift of the morphine dose-response curve compared to a 77.8-fold right-shift in its absence), and the injection of anti-IL-10 antibody or coinfusion of SB203580 partially reversed the effect of amitriptyline on the antinociceptive effect of morphine in morphine-infused rats (a 17.9-fold and 15.1-fold right-shift in morphine dose-response curves). Anti-IL-10 antibody and SB203580 significantly inhibited the amitriptyline-induced p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and heme oxygenase-1 expression and the associated antiinflammatory effect of amitriptyline. Daily injection of zinc protoporphyrin also demonstrated that it reverses the effect of amitriptyline in morphine's antinociception and antiinflammation in chronic morphine-infused rats. Conclusions These results suggest that the antiinflammatory effect of amitriptyline on morphine tolerance, probably acting by increasing IL-10 expression, is mediated by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase heme oxygenase-1 signal transduction cascade.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document