title: The Analgesic and Antineuroinflammatory Effect of Baicalein in Cancer-Induced Bone Pain.
abstract: Cancer-induced bone pain (CIBP) is a severe type of chronic pain. It is imperative to explore safe and effective analgesic drugs for CIBP treatment. Baicalein (BE), isolated from the traditional Chinese herbal medicine Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi (or Huang Qin), has been demonstrated to have anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects. In this study, we examined the effect of BE on CIBP and the mechanism of this effect. Intrathecal and oral administration of BE at different doses could alleviate the mechanical allodynia in CIBP rats. Intrathecal 100 μg BE could inhibit the production of IL-6 and TNF-α in the spinal cord of CIBP rats. Moreover, intrathecal 100 μg BE could effectively inhibit the activation of p-p38 and p-JNK MAPK signals in CIBP rats. The analgesic effect of BE may be associated with the inhibition of the expression of the inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-α and through the activation of p-p38 and p-JNK MAPK signals in the spinal cord. These findings suggest that BE is a promising novel analgesic agent for CIBP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Shan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Guiyang Medical University, 9 Beijing Road, Guiyang, Guizhou 550004, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Integrative Medicine College, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Qiu Yang Road, Minhou, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Fu
authors.initials: ZF
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Qi-Liang
authors.initials: QL
authors.lastname: Mao-Ying
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Wen-Li
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Mi
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Jian-Wei
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Gen-Cheng
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institute of Acupuncture Research (WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine), Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, 138 Yi Xue Yuan Road, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Yan-Qing
authors.initials: YQ
authors.lastname: Wang