Neurons in the caudal ventrolateral medulla mediate descending pain control.

Autor: Gu X; Molecular Genetics Section, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA., Zhang YZ; Molecular Genetics Section, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA., O'Malley JJ; Unit on the Neurobiology of Affective Memory, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA., De Preter CC; Molecular Genetics Section, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA., Penzo M; Unit on the Neurobiology of Affective Memory, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA., Hoon MA; Molecular Genetics Section, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA. mark.hoon@nih.gov.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Nature neuroscience [Nat Neurosci] 2023 Apr; Vol. 26 (4), pp. 594-605. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Mar 09.
DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01268-w
Abstrakt: Supraspinal brain regions modify nociceptive signals in response to various stressors including stimuli that elevate pain thresholds. The medulla oblongata has previously been implicated in this type of pain control, but the neurons and molecular circuits involved have remained elusive. Here we identify catecholaminergic neurons in the caudal ventrolateral medulla that are activated by noxious stimuli in mice. Upon activation, these neurons produce bilateral feed-forward inhibition that attenuates nociceptive responses through a pathway involving the locus coeruleus and norepinephrine in the spinal cord. This pathway is sufficient to attenuate injury-induced heat allodynia and is required for counter-stimulus induced analgesia to noxious heat. Our findings define a component of the pain modulatory system that regulates nociceptive responses.
(© 2023. This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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