title: NGF/TrkA Signaling as a Therapeutic Target for Pain.
abstract: Nerve growth factor (NGF) was first discovered approximately 60 years ago by Rita Levi-Montalcini as a protein that induces the growth of nerves. It is now known that NGF is also associated with Alzheimer's disease and intractable pain, and hence, it, along with its high-affinity receptor, tropomyosin receptor kinase (Trk) A, is considered to be 1 of the new targets for therapies being developed to treat these diseases. Anti-NGF antibody and TrkA inhibitors are known drugs that suppress NGF/TrkA signaling, and many drugs of these classes have been developed thus far. Interestingly, local anesthetics also possess TrkA inhibitory effects. This manuscript describes the development of an analgesic that suppresses NGF/TrkA signaling, which is anticipated to be 1 of the new methods to treat intractable pain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Hyogo College of Medicine, Hyogo, Japan.
authors.forename: Munetaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirose
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Health Care, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Himeji Dokkyo University, Hyogo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kuroda
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimatology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan.
authors.forename: Eri
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Murata
mesh_terms: D000700:Analgesics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D020917:Receptor, trkA / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor; D020917:Receptor, trkA
keywords: NGF; TrkA; anti-NGF antibody; local anesthetic; nerve growth factor; pain; protein kinase; review; tanezumab; tropomyosin receptor kinase