Central Research Laboratory, Jilin University Bethune Second Hospital, Changchun 130041, China.
Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2011 Jun;32(6):711-5. doi: 10.1038/aps.2011.63. Epub 2011 May 23.
The expression and role of the aquaporin (AQP) family water channels in the peripheral nervous system was less investigated. Since 2004, however, significant progress has been made in the immunolocalization, regulation and function of AQPs in the peripheral nervous system. These studies showed selective localization of three AQPs (AQP1, AQP2, and AQP4) in dorsal root ganglion neurons, enteric neurons and glial cells, periodontal Ruffini endings, trigeminal ganglion neurons and vomeronasal sensory neurons. Functional characterization in transgenic knockout mouse model revealed important role of AQP1 in pain perception. This review will summarize the progress in this field and discuss possible involvement of AQPs in peripheral neuropathies and their potential as novel drug targets.
水通道蛋白（AQP）家族水通道在外周神经系统中的表达和作用研究较少。然而，自 2004 年以来，AQP 在周围神经系统中的免疫定位、调节和功能方面取得了重大进展。这些研究表明，三种 AQP（AQP1、AQP2 和 AQP4）在外周神经节神经元、肠神经元和神经胶质细胞、牙周 Ruffini 末梢、三叉神经节神经元和犁鼻感觉神经元中选择性定位。在转基因敲除小鼠模型中的功能特征表明 AQP1 在痛觉感知中具有重要作用。本文综述了这一领域的进展，并讨论了 AQP 在外周神经病变中的可能作用及其作为新型药物靶点的潜力。
