Methylcobalamin: a potential vitamin of pain killer.
Methylcobalamin (MeCbl), the activated form of vitamin B12, has been used to treat some nutritional diseases and other diseases in clinic, such as Alzheimer's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. As an auxiliary agent, it exerts neuronal protection by promoting regeneration of injured nerves and antagonizing glutamate-induced neurotoxicity. Recently several lines of evidence demonstrated that MeCbl may have potential analgesic effects in experimental and clinical studies. For example, MeCbl alleviated pain behaviors in diabetic neuropathy, low back pain and neuralgia. MeCbl improved nerve conduction, promoted the regeneration of injured nerves, and inhibited ectopic spontaneous discharges of injured primary sensory neurons. This review aims to summarize the analgesic effect and mechanisms of MeCbl at the present.
Institute of Neurosciences, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, China.
Ming
M
Zhang
Institute of Neurosciences, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, China.
Wenjuan
W
Han
Institute of Neurosciences, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, China.
Sanjue
S
Hu
Institute of Neurosciences, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, China.
Hui
H
Xu
D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D009416:Nerve Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects; D009431:Neural Conduction / Q000187:drug effects; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000188:drug therapy; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy*; D014805:Vitamin B 12 / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014815:Vitamins / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D014815:Vitamins; C019476:mecobalamin; D014805:Vitamin B 12