Ma Zheng-Liang, Zhu Wei, Zhang Wei, Gu Xiao-Ping
Department of Anesthesiology, Drum Tower Hospital, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China.
Ann Clin Lab Sci. 2009 Winter;39(1):71-5.
Activity-dependent plasticity in the spinal dorsal horn may underlie the development of neuropathic pain following peripheral nerve injury. A product of an immediate early gene (IEG), the synaptic scaffolding protein Homer1a, has received increasing attention because it appears to play a critical role in synaptic plasticity. In this study, we explored the early expression of Homer1 gene in the spinal dorsal horn by using the neuropathic pain model of chronic compression of dorsal root ganglion (CCD). The levels of Homer1a mRNA in the ipsilateral dorsal horn of CCD rats were markedly increased at 4 hr, remained elevated at 8 hr, and then returned to baseline values by 24 hr after CCD treatment. In contrast, there were no significant changes of Homer1a expression in the Sham-operated or Control groups. Significant thermal hyperalgesia appeared at 24 hr post-operation in the CCD rats, but not in the Sham-operated or Control groups. These data show that CCD induces a transient and rapid increase in Homer1a expression in the spinal dorsal horn. These data also suggest that the transient and rapid increase in Homer1a expression may play an important role in the thermal hyperalgesia elicited by neural injury.
脊髓背角中依赖活动的可塑性可能是周围神经损伤后神经性疼痛发展的基础。作为即刻早期基因（IEG）的产物，突触支架蛋白Homer1a受到越来越多的关注，因为它似乎在突触可塑性中起关键作用。在本研究中，我们利用背根神经节慢性压迫（CCD）的神经性疼痛模型，探索了脊髓背角中Homer1基因的早期表达。CCD大鼠同侧背角中Homer1a mRNA水平在CCD处理后4小时显著升高，8小时时仍保持升高，然后在24小时时恢复到基线值。相比之下，假手术组或对照组中Homer1a表达没有显著变化。CCD大鼠术后24小时出现明显的热痛觉过敏，但假手术组或对照组未出现。这些数据表明，CCD诱导脊髓背角中Homer1a表达短暂快速增加。这些数据还表明，Homer1a表达的短暂快速增加可能在神经损伤引起的热痛觉过敏中起重要作用。
