scholarly journals Use of the Rat Grimace Scale to Evaluate Visceral Pain in a Model of Chemotherapy-Induced Mucositis

Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 678
Author(s):  
Rebecca P. George ◽  
Gordon S. Howarth ◽  
Alexandra L. Whittaker

The rat grimace scale (RGS) is a measure of spontaneous pain that evaluates pain response. The ability to characterize pain through a non-invasive method has considerable utility for numerous animal models of disease, including mucositis, a painful, self-limiting side-effect of chemotherapy treatment. Preclinical studies investigating novel therapeutics for mucositis often focus on pathological outcomes and disease severity. These investigations fail to measure pain, in spite of reduction of pain being a key clinical therapeutic goal. This study assessed the utility of the RGS for pain assessment in a rat model of mucositis, and whether changes in disease activity index (DAI) and open field test (OFT) reflected the grimace responses recorded. Sixty tumor-bearing female Dark Agouti rats were injected with either saline or 5-Fluourouracil alone, or with co-administration of opioid analgesics. Whilst differences in DAI were observed between treatment groups, no difference in RGS scores or OFT were demonstrated. Significant increases in grimace scores were observed across time. However, whilst a statistically significant change may have been noted, the biological relevance is questionable in terms of practical usage, since an observer is only able to score whole numbers. Development of effective pain assessment methods in animal models is required to improve welfare, satisfy regulatory requirements, and increase translational validity of the model to human patients.

2021 ◽  
pp. ASN.2020081177
Author(s):  
Jingping Yang ◽  
Difei Zhang ◽  
Masaru Motojima ◽  
Tsutomu Kume ◽  
Qing Hou ◽  
...  

BackgroundTranscriptional programs control cell fate, and identifying their components is critical for understanding diseases caused by cell lesion, such as podocytopathy. Although many transcription factors (TFs) are necessary for cell-state maintenance in glomeruli, their roles in transcriptional regulation are not well understood.MethodsThe distribution of H3K27ac histones in human glomerulus cells was analyzed to identify superenhancer-associated TFs, and ChIP-seq and transcriptomics were performed to elucidate the regulatory roles of the TFs. Transgenic animal models of disease were further investigated to confirm the roles of specific TFs in podocyte maintenance.ResultsSuperenhancer distribution revealed a group of potential TFs in core regulatory circuits in human glomerulus cells, including FOXC1/2, WT1, and LMX1B. Integration of transcriptome and cistrome data of FOXC1/2 in mice resolved transcriptional regulation in podocyte maintenance. FOXC1/2 regulated differentiation-associated transcription in mature podocytes. In both humans and animal models, mature podocyte injury was accompanied by deregulation of FOXC1/2 expression, and FOXC1/2 overexpression could protect podocytes in zebrafish.ConclusionsFOXC1/2 maintain podocyte differentiation through transcriptional stabilization. The genome-wide chromatin resources support further investigation of TFs’ regulatory roles in glomeruli transcription programs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhang Jing ◽  
Wang Rui ◽  
Li Ruihua ◽  
Yu Hao ◽  
Fang Hengtong

: Since the discovery of (2α,3β)-2,3-dihydroxyolean-12-en-28-oic acid, also known as maslinic acid, many studies have examined its biological activity, which has been shown to promote health and resist various diseases. This article focuses on previous research on maslinic acid and mainly reviews its reported effects on cardiovascular diseases, neuroprotection, diabetes, cancer, inflammation, and pathogens. Maslinic acid exerts positive effects on both cell and animal models of disease. Although its mechanism of action has not yet been completely elucidated, maslinic acid is feasible as a nutritional additive and has the potential to be developed as a drug.


2020 ◽  
Vol 23-24 ◽  
pp. 11-16
Author(s):  
Diann Blanset ◽  
Julie Hutt ◽  
Sherry Morgan

PLoS Medicine ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. e1000245 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Bart van der Worp ◽  
David W. Howells ◽  
Emily S. Sena ◽  
Michelle J. Porritt ◽  
Sarah Rewell ◽  
...  

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