No DREAM, No pain. Closing the spinal gate.
Pain transmission in the spinal cord is regulated by a balance of facilitatory and inhibitory influences operating on the neural circuits of the somatosensory system. The transcriptional repressor DREAM acts constitutively to suppress prodynorphin expression in spinal cord neurons. Knocking out DREAM results in sufficient dynorphin expression to produce a strong reduction in generalized pain behavior, highlighting the role that intracellular molecules play in modulating pain gating in the spinal cord.
Costigan
Michael
M
Neural Plasticity Research Group, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital-East, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.
Woolf
Clifford J
CJ
D000818:Animals; D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins; D004399:Dynorphins / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D051605:Kv Channel-Interacting Proteins; D010146:Pain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017473:Receptors, Opioid, kappa / Q000502:physiology; D012097:Repressor Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000502:physiology* / Q000503:physiopathology
D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins; C496749:KCNIP3 protein, human; D051605:Kv Channel-Interacting Proteins; D017473:Receptors, Opioid, kappa; D012097:Repressor Proteins; D004399:Dynorphins