One of the outstanding issues of modern medicine is to combat pain effectively. Jose Vicente Torres Pérez, a Spanish researcher who works at Imperial College in London, set out to curb the suffering of people with serious burns.
Torres found that blocking a new genetic marker can reduce the neural activation caused by painful stimuli.
As Torres, the only Spanish researcher participating in the study published today in the journal ‘Scientific Reports’, explains to SINC: “The cell activation markers most used today are pERK1/2 and c-Fos, but both have their limitations.”
The development and persistence of pain depends on plastic changes to the neurons that process information on noxious stimuli, which are those of the dorsal spinal cord.
These plastic changes are largely regulated by epigenetic mechanisms, i.e. chemical changes that alter the expression of the genes, but not their sequence, such as post-translational modifications of histones.
“Seeking new pain markers continues to be very important in the field of nociception, which analyses the subjective experience of pain, and a need that has not yet been met,” adds Torres Pérez.
New pain relief therapy
Technically, the team in which the Spanish expert works has demonstrated in mice that a population of superficial neurons in the spinal cord controls an epigenetic marker known as pS10H3.
“We observed the effect after using various animal pain models: inducing burns, applying capsaicin or electrical nerve stimulation,” explains Torres Pérez. Therefore, the authors believe that, if this activation is blocked, they will achieve a new pain relief therapy.
For the Spanish researcher, “pS10H3 is a new marker of pain processing in neurons on the spinal cord, and the changes caused by it are fundamental to normal pain development, which opens up new therapeutic possibilities.”
Application to burn victims
Recent advances have significantly increased the survival rates of burn victims, but little has been achieved to alleviate the pain they suffer.
According to the authors, advances that help to decipher the molecular mechanisms produced in neurons that are key to processing pain – such as the discovery of this alteration – will help to find new therapeutic strategies.
“We propose that blocking this epigenetic modification could be a new strategy to try to reduce or completely eliminate the pain after these processes,” Torres Pérez concludes.
[osd_subscribe categories=’Epigenetics’ placeholder=’Email Address’ button_text=’Subscribe Now for any new posts on the topic “EPIGENETICS”‘]
Receive an email update when we add a new EPIGENETICS article.
The Latest on: Epigenetics
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Epigenetics” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Epigenetics
- Watch what you eat! Your diet can have a influence on your descendant's genes!on May 3, 2024 at 10:27 am
Genes, regions of DNA that are largely responsible for our physical characteristics, were considered unchanging under the original model of genetics pioneered by biologist Gregor Mendel in 1865. That ...
- Revealing How Epigenetics Contribute to ALSon May 3, 2024 at 10:02 am
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating and fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of motor neurons | Cell And Molecular Biology ...
- MD Anderson researcher Sharon Dent elected to prestigious National Academy of Scienceson May 1, 2024 at 12:13 pm
HOUSTON ― Sharon Dent, Ph.D., professor of Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).
- Tune Therapeutics to test vaccine-like epigenetics platformon April 30, 2024 at 2:22 pm
Duke University spinout Tune Therapeutics is rehearsing the overture of its avant-garde therapeutic platform targeting chronic Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) that could also upend many more chronic disease ...
- Meta-Analysis Catalogues Pesticides’ Adverse Impact on How Genes Functionon April 29, 2024 at 9:01 pm
Researchers found a relationship between epigenetic changes and pesticide exposure in a systematic review and meta-analysis of existing literature.
- What you eat could alter your unborn children and grandchildren’s genes and health outcomeson April 22, 2024 at 10:36 pm
The emergence of the field of epigenetics in 1942 shattered this notion. Epigenetics refers to shifts in gene expression that occur without changes to the DNA sequence. Some epigenetic changes are ...
- Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigeneticson April 19, 2024 at 4:04 pm
The scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics focus on the development and functioning of such strategies. They examine how the immune system emerged in the course of ...
- Success Beyond Destiny: How Epigenetics Challenges The Law Of Attraction In Businesson April 17, 2024 at 4:30 am
But this formula lacks variables that account for genetic predispositions. The science of epigenetics demonstrates that your lifestyle, environment and mental state can influence which genes are ...
- BIOL.4385 Epigenetics & Chromatinon April 8, 2024 at 3:51 am
Although epigenetic phenomena have been observed for over a century, researchers have only started to untangle their underlying mechanism and effects on gene expression. This course provides and ...
via Bing News