title: Effects of methyl donor diets on incisional pain in mice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dietary supplementation with methyl donors can influence the programming of epigenetic patterns resulting in persistent alterations in disease susceptibility and behavior. However, the dietary effects of methyl donors on pain have not been explored. In this study, we evaluated the effects of dietary methyl donor content on pain responses in mice.
  
  
  METHODS
  Male and female C57BL/6J mice were treated with high or low methyl donor diets either in the perinatal period or after weaning. Mechanical and thermal nociceptive sensitivity were measured before and after incision.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mice fed high or low methyl donor diets displayed equal weight gain over the course of the experiments. When exposed to these dietary manipulations in the perinatal period, only male offspring of dams fed a high methyl donor diet displayed increased mechanical allodynia. Hindpaw incision in these animals caused enhanced nociceptive sensitization, but dietary history did not affect the duration of sensitization. For mice exposed to high or low methyl donor diets after weaning, no significant differences were observed in mechanical or thermal nociceptive sensitivity either at baseline or in response to hindpaw incision.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Perinatal dietary factors such as methyl donor content may impact pain experiences in later life. These effects, however, may be specific to sex and pain modality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States of America ; Department of Anesthesiology, Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Deyong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: Peyman
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sahbaie
authors.forename: J David
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Clark
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002794:Choline / Q000008:administration & dosage; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology; D006930:Hyperalgesia / Q000178:diet therapy*; D008297:Male; D008715:Methionine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D010146:Pain / Q000178:diet therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D014805:Vitamin B 12 / Q000008:administration & dosage; D014886:Weaning
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid; D008715:Methionine; D002794:Choline; D014805:Vitamin B 12