Wangyuan Zou

Intrathecal 5-azacytidine inhibits global DNA methylation and methyl- CpG-binding protein 2 expression and alleviates neuropathic pain in rats following chronic constriction injury.

The pathogenesis of neuropathic pain remains largely unknown. Epigenetic mechanisms may play a major role in regulating expression of pro- or antinociceptive genes. DNA methylation is a major epigenetic mechanism in vertebrates, and methyl- CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2) is directly involved in methylation-mediated gene silencing. To determine how changes in global DNA methylation and MeCP2 expression occur following chronic constriction injury (CCI) and how repression of DNA methylation affects these changes and attenuates neuropathic pain, we used intrathecal 5-azacytidine, a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, in CCI rats. Rats received 0.9% saline or 5-azacytidine (10μmol·d(-1)) via spinal injection once daily from day 3 to day 14 after CCI surgery. Global DNA methylation and MeCP2 expression increased in the spinal cord in CCI rats on day 14 after CCI surgery. Mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia induced by CCI were attenuated by intrathecal 5-azacytidine from day 5 to day 14 after CCI surgery. The increases in global DNA methylation and MeCP2 expression in the spinal cord in CCI rats were also significantly inhibited by intrathecal 5-azacytidine. These results demonstrate that increased global DNA methylation and MeCP2 expression in the spinal cord after nerve damage may play an important role in neuropathic pain. 5-azacytidine shows potential for treating neuropathic pain.

Effects of intrathecal epigallocatechin gallate, an inhibitor of Toll-like receptor 4, on chronic neuropathic pain in rats.

Numerous studies revealed that spinal inflammation and immune response play an important role in neuropathic pain. In this study, we investigated the effects of intrathecal injection of a Toll-like receptor (TLR4) inhibitor epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) on neuropathic pain induced by chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve (CCI). A total of 120 rats were randomly assigned into 4 groups: sham-operated group, CCI group, CCI plus normal saline group and CCI plus EGCG group. CCI and sham surgeries were performed and both thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia were tested. Lumbar spinal cord was sampled and the mRNA and protein expressions of TLR4 and High Mobility Group 1 protein (HMGB1) were detected, the contents of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) were measured by ELISA, and immunohistochemistry for nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) was also carried out. When compared with the sham group, both mechanical and heat pain thresholds were significantly decreased, and the mRNA and protein expressions of TLR4 and HMGB1, the contents of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-10 in the spinal cords and NF-κB expression in the spinal dorsal horn were markedly increased in CCI rats (P<0.05). After intrathecal injection of EGCG (1mg/kg) once daily from 1day before to 3days after CCI surgery, the expressions of TLR4, NF-κB, HMGB1, TNF-α and IL-1β were markedly decreased while the content of IL-10 in the spinal cord increased significantly accompanied by dramatical improvement of pain behaviors in CCI rats (P<0.05). These results show that the TLR4 signaling pathway plays an important role in the occurrence and development of neuropathic pain, and the therapy targeting TLR4 might be a novel strategy in the treatment of neuropathic pain.

p300 exerts an epigenetic role in chronic neuropathic pain through its acetyltransferase activity in rats following chronic constriction injury (CCI)

BackgroundNeuropathic pain is detrimental to human health; however, its pathogenesis still remains largely unknown. Overexpression of pain-associated genes and increased nociceptive somato-sensitivity are well observed in neuropathic pain. The importance of epigenetic mechanisms in regulating the expression of pro- or anti-nociceptive genes has been revealed by studies recently, and we hypothesize that the transcriptional coactivator and the histone acetyltransferase E1A binding protein p300 (p300), as a part of the epigenetic mechanisms of gene regulation, may be involved in the pathogenesis of neuropathic pain induced by chronic constriction injury (CCI). To test this hypothesis, two different approaches were used in this study: (I) down-regulating p300 with specific small hairpin RNA (shRNA) and (II) chemical inhibition of p300 acetyltransferase activity by a small molecule inhibitor, C646.ResultsUsing the CCI rat model, we found that the p300 expression was increased in the lumbar spinal cord on day 14 after CCI. The treatment with intrathecal p300 shRNA reversed CCI-induced mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia, and suppressed the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), a neuropathic pain-associated factor. Furthermore, C646, an inhibitor of p300 acetyltransferase, also attenuated mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia, accompanied by a suppressed COX-2 expression, in the spinal cord.ConclusionsThe results suggest that, through its acetyltransferase activity in the spinal cord after CCI, p300 epigenetically plays an important role in neuropathic pain. Inhibiting p300, using interfering RNA or C646, may be a promising approach to the development of new neuropathic pain therapies.

Intrathecal lentiviral-mediated RNA interference targeting PKCγ attenuates chronic constriction injury-induced neuropathic pain in rats.

In the spinal cord, protein kinase C isoform γ (PKCγ) plays an important role in the development of central pain sensitization. However, there are currently no specific PKCγ inhibitors available. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to assess the role of PKCγ in the modulation of pain using a more selective experimental tool. Although small interfering RNAs have been used to silence genes in neurons, in vivo delivery of RNA interference (RNAi) remains a major challenge, thus limiting its applications. Here we developed a highly efficient method of lentiviral-mediated delivery of short-hairpin RNAs targeting PKCγ for in vivo gene silencing in the spinal cord of rats. This method decreased the expression of PKCγ mRNA and protein, and additionally attenuated chronic constriction injury-induced mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia for more than 6 weeks. Our study suggests that PKCγ is a potential RNAi target for neuropathic pain. Furthermore, the lentiviral vector delivery strategy holds great promise as a novel approach for the treatment of neuropathic pain and study of PKCγ gene function.

Cyclooxygenase inhibitors suppress the expression of P2X3 receptors in the DRG and attenuate hyperalgesia following chronic constriction injury in rats

Recent evidence suggests that P2X(3) receptors express abundantly in nociceptive sensory neurons and play an important role in neuropathic pain. Upregulation of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) after nerve injure is involved in the pathogenesis of neuropathic pain. An increase of P2X(3) receptors after chronic constriction injury (CCI) to the sciatic nerve has also been reported, the mechanisms are not known clearly. In this study, we examined the effects of systemic administration of cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitors on analgesia and the expression of P2X(3) receptors in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) in CCI rats. Rats received 0.9% saline, the nonselective COX inhibitor ibuprofen (40mgkg(-1)day(-1)) or the selective COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib (30mgkg(-1)day(-1)) by gavage twice daily from 3 to 14 days after surgery. Mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia induced by CCI were markedly attenuated by celecoxib from 5 to 14 days after surgery, and relieved by ibuprofen treatment from 7 to 10 days after surgery. The increase of P2X(3) receptors in the DRG in CCI rats on day 14 after surgery was also significantly inhibited; the effect of ibuprofen was stronger than that of celecoxib. These results demonstrate that up-regulated COX/PGE2 after nerve damage may play an important role in neuropathic pain. They are highly involved in the expression of P2X(3) receptors in the DRG in CCI rats.

Gene knockdown with lentiviral vector-mediated intrathecal RNA interference of protein kinase C gamma reverses chronic morphine tolerance in rats.

Although morphine is a widely used opioid analgesic, morphine tolerance (MT) has limited the use of the drug because it creates the necessity for high doses. Protein kinase C (PKC), especially the PKCγ isoform, is considered to play a key role in the development of MT. Because RNA interference provides a powerful method for the investigation of gene function, and lentiviral delivery systems have been approved for human use, this present study examined rats tolerant to morphine to determine whether an intrathecal injection of a lentiviral vector of PKCγ short hairpin RNA (LV‐shPKCγ) down‐regulated the expression of the PKCγ gene and reversed MT.

Repression of contexual fear memory induced by isoflurane is accompanied by reduction in histone acetylation and rescued by sodium butyrate

BACKGROUND Isoflurane produces amnesia in mice during contextual fear conditioning (CFC) trials. Histone acetylation is a form of chromatin modification involved in the transcriptional regulation underlying memory formation. We investigated whether isoflurane-induced repression of contextual fear memory is related to altered histone acetylation in the hippocampus, and whether it can be rescued by the histone deacetylases inhibitor sodium butyrate (SB). METHODS Adult C57BL/6 mice were chronically given intraperitoneal injections of SB or vehicle for 28 days. Immediately before CFC training, the mice were exposed to isoflurane or air for 30 min and CFC testing was performed the next day. Hippocampal histone acetylation was analysed 1 h after CFC training. c-Fos, an immediate early gene (IEG) suggested to participate in learning and memory formation, was also investigated at the same timepoint. RESULTS Mice exposed to isoflurane showed a reduction in freezing time during the CFC test. These mice also exhibited reduced hippocampal H3K14, H4K5, and H4K12 acetylation 1 h after CFC training, and also decreased c-Fos expression. All of these changes were attenuated in isoflurane-exposed mice that were chronically treated with SB. CONCLUSIONS Isoflurane suppresses histone acetylation and down-regulates c-Fos gene expression in CA1 of the hippocampus after CFC training. These changes are associated with isoflurane-induced amnesia. The HDAC inhibitor SB prevented repressed contextual fear memory, presumably by promoting histone acetylation and histone acetylation-mediated gene expression in response to CFC training.

Intrathecal infusion of pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate for the prevention and reversal of neuropathic pain in rats using a sciatic chronic constriction injury model.

Background and Objectives: Recent studies have suggested that nuclear factor &kgr;B (NF-&kgr;B) may play a role in mediating nerve injury-induced neuropathic pain. Here, we examined the effects of intrathecal pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC), a NF-&kgr;B inhibitor, on the development of neuropathic pain, spinal microglial activation, and CX3CR1 expression induced by sciatic chronic constriction injury (CCI) model in rats. Methods: Under chloral hydrate anesthesia, male Sprague-Dawley rats (300-350 g) fitted with intrathecal catheters underwent either sciatic CCI or sham surgery. Intrathecal saline or PDTC (100 or 1000 pmol/d) was infused 1 day before or 3 days after CCI (n = 8). The rat hind-paw withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimuli and withdrawal latency to radiant heat were determined before surgery and from days 1 to 7 after CCI. Spinal microglial activation was evaluated with OX-42 immunoreactivity, and spinal CX3CR1 expression was assessed by Western blotting. Results: Chronic constriction injury induced mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia and microglial activation as demonstrated by OX-42 expression. Whereas it had no apparent effect on spinal cord histology, intrathecal administration of PDTC prevented the development of the mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia and inhibited nerve injury-induced microglial activation and spinal CX3CR1 expression. Conclusions: In this study, we have shown the protective effect of intrathecal PDTC on the development of nociceptive behaviors induced by CCI in rats. The activation of NF-&kgr;B pathway may contribute to spinal microglial activation and CX3CR1 up-regulation.

Identification of differentially expressed proteins in the spinal cord of neuropathic pain models with PKCgamma silence by proteomic analysis.

In order to elucidate the mechanisms that PKCγ regulates neuropathic pain (NP), and detect proteins that are associated with the function of PKCγ in NP, we exploited a chronic constriction injury (CCI)-induced neuropathic pain rat (CCI-NP rat) model in which PKCγ knockdown in the spinal cord was successfully carried out with stable RNA interference (RNAi). The spinal cords (L4-L5) were surgically obtained from CCI-NP rats with and without PKCγ knockdown, for comparative proteomic analysis. The total proteins from the spinal cords (L4-L5) were extracted and were separated with two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DGE). 2D gel images were analyzed with PDQuest software. Nineteen differential gel-spots were identified with spot-volume increased and 17 spots with spot-volume decreased. Among them, eighteen differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were identified with matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) between CCI-NP rats with and without PKCγ knockout. Those DEPs are involved in transmission and modulation of noxious information; cellular homeostasis and metabolism; antioxidant proteins, heat shock proteins and chaperones; membrane receptor trafficking; and cytoskeleton. Three DEPs (SNAP-25, TERA and AR) were validated with Western blot analysis, and confirmed the DEP data. Further study showed that AR-selective inhibitor epalrestat totally turned over the upregulated expression of AR in CCI-NP rats. Those DEP data are extensively associated with the function of PKCγ that regulates NP, and would contribute to the clarification of the mechanisms of PKCγ in NP.

Neonatal isoflurane exposure induces neurocognitive impairment and abnormal hippocampal histone acetylation in mice

Background Neonatal exposure to isoflurane may induce long-term memory impairment in mice. Histone acetylation is an important form of chromatin modification that regulates the transcription of genes required for memory formation. This study investigated whether neonatal isoflurane exposure-induced neurocognitive impairment is related to dysregulated histone acetylation in the hippocampus and whether it can be attenuated by the histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor trichostatin A (TSA). Methods C57BL/6 mice were exposed to 0.75% isoflurane three times (each for 4 h) at postnatal days 7, 8, and 9. Contextual fear conditioning (CFC) was tested at 3 months after anesthesia administration. TSA was intraperitoneally injected 2 h before CFC training. Hippocampal histone acetylation levels were analyzed following CFC training. Levels of the neuronal activation and synaptic plasticity marker c-Fos were investigated at the same time point. Results Mice that were neonatally exposed to isoflurane showed significant memory impairment on CFC testing. These mice also exhibited dysregulated hippocampal H4K12 acetylation and decreased c-Fos expression following CFC training. TSA attenuated isoflurane-induced memory impairment and simultaneously increased histone acetylation and c-Fos levels in the hippocampal cornu ammonis (CA)1 area 1 h after CFC training. Conclusions Memory impairment induced by repeated neonatal exposure to isoflurane is associated with dysregulated histone H4K12 acetylation in the hippocampus, which probably affects downstream c-Fos gene expression following CFC training. The HDAC inhibitor TSA successfully rescued impaired contextual fear memory, presumably by promoting histone acetylation and histone acetylation-mediated gene expression.