title: Neurotrophins: mediators and modulators of pain.
abstract: The neurotrophin family of neurotrophic factors are well-known for their effects on neuronal survival and growth. Over the past decade, considerable evidence has accumulated from both humans and animals that one neurotrophin, nerve growth factor (NGF), is a peripheral pain mediator, particularly in inflammatory pain states. NGF is upregulated in a wide variety of inflammatory conditions, and NGF-neutralizing molecules are effective analgesic agents in many models of persistent pain. Such molecules are now being evaluated in clinical trials. NGF regulates the expression of a second neurotrophin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), in nociceptors. BDNF is released when nociceptors are activated, and it acts as a central modulator of pain. The chapter reviews the evidence for these roles (and briefly the effects of other neurotrophins), the range of conditions under which they act, and their mechanism of action.
authors.affiliation: The London Pain Consortium, King's College London, The Wolfson Center for Age-Related Diseases, SE1 1UL London, United Kingdom. sophie.pezet@kcl.ac.uk
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pezet
authors.forename: Stephen B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: McMahon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000145:classification / Q000502:physiology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000187:drug effects; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017475:Receptors, Nerve Growth Factor / Q000502:physiology; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D017475:Receptors, Nerve Growth Factor