Molecular Bases of Disease
Cannabinoid CB2 receptors are upregulated via bivalent histone modifications and control primary afferent input to the spinal cord in neuropathic pain
Type-2 cannabinoid receptors (CB2, encoded by the Cnr2 gene) are mainly expressed in immune cells, and CB2 agonists normally have no analgesic effect. However, nerve injury upregulates CB2 in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG), following which CB2 stimulation reduces neuropathic pain. It is unclear how nerve injury increases CB2 expression or how CB2 activity is transformed in neuropathic pain. In this study, immunoblotting showed that spinal nerve ligation (SNL) induced a delayed and sustained increase in CB2 expression in the DRG and dorsal spinal cord synaptosomes.Histone methyltransferase G9a diminishes expression of cannabinoid CB1 receptors in primary sensory neurons in neuropathic pain
Type 1 cannabinoid receptors (CB1Rs) are expressed in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and contribute to the analgesic effect of cannabinoids. However, the epigenetic mechanism regulating the expression of CB1Rs in neuropathic pain is unknown. G9a (encoded by the Ehmt2 gene), a histone 3 at lysine 9 methyltransferase, is a key chromatin regulator responsible for gene silencing. In this study, we determined G9a's role in regulating CB1R expression in the DRG and in CB1R-mediated analgesic effects in an animal model of neuropathic pain.RE1-silencing transcription factor controls the acute-to-chronic neuropathic pain transition and Chrm2 receptor gene expression in primary sensory neurons
Neuropathic pain is associated with persistent changes in gene expression in primary sensory neurons, but the underlying epigenetic mechanisms that cause these changes remain unclear. The muscarinic cholinergic receptors (mAChRs), particularly the M2 subtype (encoded by the cholinergic receptor muscarinic 2 (Chrm2) gene), are critically involved in the regulation of spinal nociceptive transmission. However, little is known about how Chrm2 expression is transcriptionally regulated. Here we show that nerve injury persistently increased the expression of RE1-silencing transcription factor (REST, also known as neuron-restrictive silencing factor [NRSF]), a gene-silencing transcription factor, in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG).RYBP Expression Is Regulated by KLF4 and Sp1 and Is Related to Hepatocellular Carcinoma Prognosis
The expression of Ring1- and YY1-binding protein (RYBP) is reduced in several human cancers, but the molecular mechanism(s) have remained elusive. In this study, we used human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell lines and tissue specimens to study the mechanism and herein report several new findings. First, we cloned and characterized the basal promoter region of the human RYBP gene. We found that the decreased RYBP expression in HCC tissues was not due to promoter sequence variation/polymorphisms or CpG dinucleotide methylation.Presynaptic N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) Receptor Activity Is Increased Through Protein Kinase C in Paclitaxel-induced Neuropathic Pain
Painful peripheral neuropathy is a severe adverse effect of chemotherapeutic drugs such as paclitaxel (Taxol). The glutamate N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) are critically involved in the synaptic plasticity associated with neuropathic pain. However, paclitaxel treatment does not alter the postsynaptic NMDAR activity of spinal dorsal horn neurons. In this study, we determined whether paclitaxel affects presynaptic NMDAR activity by recording excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) of dorsal horn neurons in spinal cord slices.Nerve Injury Diminishes Opioid Analgesia through Lysine Methyltransferase-mediated Transcriptional Repression of μ-Opioid Receptors in Primary Sensory Neurons
The μ-opioid receptor (MOR, encoded by Oprm1) agonists are the mainstay analgesics for treating moderate to severe pain. Nerve injury causes down-regulation of MORs in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and diminishes the opioid effect on neuropathic pain. However, the epigenetic mechanisms underlying the diminished MOR expression caused by nerve injury are not clear. G9a (encoded by Ehmt2), a histone 3 at lysine 9 methyltransferase, is a key chromatin regulator responsible for gene silencing. In this study, we determined the role of G9a in diminished MOR expression and opioid analgesic effects in animal models of neuropathic pain.
