The vanilloid receptor-1 is expressed in rat spinal dorsal horn astrocytes

• Published in: Neuroscience letters 2004-03, Vol.357 (2), p.123-126
• Main Authors: Doly, Stéphane, Fischer, Jacqueline, Salio, Chiara, Conrath, Marie
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Astrocyte; Astrocytes - metabolism; Astrocytes - ultrastructure; Biological and medical sciences; Capsaicin; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Regulation - physiology; Glial fibrillary acidic protein; Immunocytochemistry; Immunohistochemistry; Life Sciences; Male; Mice; Mice, Knockout; Microscopy, Immunoelectron; Neurobiology; Neurons and Cognition; Posterior Horn Cells - metabolism; Posterior Horn Cells - ultrastructure; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Receptors, Drug - biosynthesis; Receptors, Drug - genetics; Receptors, Drug - ultrastructure; Spinal cord; Ultrastructure; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
• ISSN: 0304-3940; 1872-7972
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2003.12.051

The vanilloid receptor-1 (TRPV1), expressed by nociceptive fibers, is a transducer of thermal and chemical nociceptive messages. However, endogenous ligands excite TRPV1 receptors localized on central nociceptive terminals and interneurons. Using immunocytochemistry at the ultrastructural level, we show that TRPV1 is also expressed in spinal glial cells characterized as astrocyte by double labeling with glial fibrillary acid protein. Quantification of the labeling shows that the most numerous labeling is neuronal and that 7% of the total TRPV1 labeling is localized in astrocytes. The total absence of staining in TRPV1 knock out mice strongly suggests that true TRPV1 protein is present in astrocytes. The localization of TRPV1-containing astrocytes apposed to nociceptive C-terminals suggests that they may be involved in the control of pain transmission.