title: Up-regulation of cyclooxygenase-2 mRNA in the rat spinal cord following peripheral inflammation.
abstract: Prostaglandins (PG) have been described as mediators in spinal nociceptive processing after peripheral inflammation. Enzymes essential for PG biosynthesis, cyclooxygenase isozymes COX-1 and COX-2, have not yet been investigated in the spinal cord. In two studies on rats with adjuvant-induced peripheral inflammation levels of mRNA expression of both COX isoforms were analyzed in the lumbar section of the spinal cord using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique. We could show that mRNA of both COX isoforms is expressed constitutively in the spinal cord with COX-2 as the predominant isoform. Six hours after induction of peripheral inflammation, levels of COX-2 mRNA expression were raised significantly in respect to untreated control rats and returned to baseline within 3 days after induction of inflammation. COX-2 might therefore be regarded as the COX isozyme responsible for spinal PG release in nociceptive processing under a peripheral inflammatory stimulus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Beiche
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Scheuerer
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Brune
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Geisslinger
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goppelt-Struebe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001169:Arthritis, Experimental / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D001483:Base Sequence; D051545:Cyclooxygenase 1; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D007249:Inflammation / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics*; D007527:Isoenzymes / Q000235:genetics*; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000378:metabolism*; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D007527:Isoenzymes; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D051545:Cyclooxygenase 1; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases; C496513:Ptgs1 protein, rat