(Press-News.org) Contact information: Thomas Voets
thomas.voets@med.kuleuven.be
32-163-30217
KU Leuven
Short circuit in molecular switch intensifies pain
While searching for novel painkillers, researchers at KU Leuven in Belgium came to the surprising conclusion that some candidate drugs actually increase pain. In a study published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology, the researchers show that a molecular switch in the nerves responsible for detecting pain can 'short-circuit', thus aggravating the onset of pain.
Pain functions as an important alarm signal. It alerts us to potential bodily harm – a hot or sharp object, for example – and motivates us to withdraw from damaging situations. At the cellular level, pain involves the stimulation of a network of pain nerves spread through the skin, mucosa and bodily organs.
Embedded in the cell wall surrounding these nerves are ion channels. These tiny, microscopic pathways respond to stimuli such as extreme cold or heat, mechanical pressure or harmful chemicals. When ion channels open, an electrical signal is created, transmitted to the brain, and interpreted as pain.
In previous research, the team of KU Leuven researchers led by Professor Thomas Voets (Laboratory of Ion Channel Research) and Professor Joris Vriens (Laboratory of Obstetrics and Experimental Gynaecology) discovered that a particular ion channel – TRPM3 – acts as a molecular fire detector: the ion channel detects heat and the hormone pregnenolone sulfate, a precursor to the sex hormones estrogen and testosterone and a trigger for pain and inflammation. In the present study, the researchers were looking for TRPM3 inhibitors that could potentially be used as painkillers.
Surprisingly, their results show that a number of drugs meant as painkillers actually increased pain in mice tested in the study, says Professor Voets: "Normally, when the ion channel is closed, no electrical signal is sent to the brain and therefore no pain is detected. But we found that pain can indeed occur despite a closed ion channel. How? A short-circuit in the ion channel. When short-circuiting occurs, the electrical signal effected by a stimulus does not follow the normal pathway through the central pore of the ion channel. Instead, it navigates an alternative path through the surrounding material. This 'electric leak' activates the pain nerves, thus increasing the sensation of pain. This may explain the pain-enhancing side effects of some drugs – such as clotrimazole, a common remedy for yeast infections that often causes unpleasant side effects such as irritation and burning sensations.
"It is striking that short-circuits in the ion channel only occur at high hormone levels. This could explain why some patients experience these side effects while others do not," says Professor Voets. The researchers hope this new knowledge about TRPM3-dependent pain will contribute to the development of new painkillers with fewer painful side effects.
### END
Short circuit in molecular switch intensifies pain
2014-01-14
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Younger people have 'high definition' memories
2014-01-14
Younger people have 'high definition' memories
Researchers look at age-related differences on how memories are stored and retrieved
It's not that younger people are able to remember more than older people. Their memories seem better because they are able to retrieve ...
UNC researchers harness sun's energy during day for use at night
2014-01-14
UNC researchers harness sun's energy during day for use at night
Solar energy has long been used as a clean alternative to fossil fuels such as coal and oil, but it could only be harnessed during the day when the sun's rays were strongest. ...
Regenstrief and IU review finds lack of delirium screening in the emergency department
2014-01-14
Regenstrief and IU review finds lack of delirium screening in the emergency department
INDIANAPOLIS -- Delirium in older patients in an emergency room setting can foretell other health issues. But according to a new study published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine, ...
Dance and virtual reality: A promising treatment for urinary incontinence in elderly women
2014-01-14
Dance and virtual reality: A promising treatment for urinary incontinence in elderly women
This news release is available in French. Virtual reality, dance and fun are not the first things that come to mind when we think of treating urinary ...
Brain structure shows who is most sensitive to pain
2014-01-14
Brain structure shows who is most sensitive to pain
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Jan. 14, 2014 – Everybody feels pain differently, and brain structure may hold the clue to these differences.
In a study published in the current online issue of the journal ...
Geriatric health professionals experience added burden when caring for own family members
2014-01-14
Geriatric health professionals experience added burden when caring for own family members
(Boston) --In what is believed to be the first study of its kind, researchers from Boston Medical Center (BMC) and Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) ...
Georgia Tech researchers reveal phrases that pay on Kickstarter
2014-01-14
Georgia Tech researchers reveal phrases that pay on Kickstarter
New study finds that pitch language plays major role in success of projects on popular crowdfunding site
Researchers at Georgia Tech studying the burgeoning phenomenon of crowdfunding have ...
Potential future data storage at domain boundaries
2014-01-14
Potential future data storage at domain boundaries
Scientists discover polar domain walls in antiferroelectric materials
This news release is available in German. Storing more and more in an ever-smaller space – what sounds impossible is in fact just ...
Research shows early promise of new drug for cancers caused by viruses
2014-01-14
Research shows early promise of new drug for cancers caused by viruses
New Orleans, LA – Christopher Parsons, MD, Director of the HIV Malignancies Program at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, is the senior author of a paper that is the ...
Illinois study identifies 3 risk factors most highly correlated with child obesity
2014-01-14
Illinois study identifies 3 risk factors most highly correlated with child obesity
URBANA, Ill. – A University of Illinois study has identified the three most significant risk factors for child ...