Effect of Surgical and Chemical Sensory Denervation on Non-neural Expression of the Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) Receptors in the Rat

• Published in: Journal of molecular neuroscience 2012-11, Vol.48 (3), p.795-803
• Main Authors: Kun, József, Helyes, Zsuzsanna, Perkecz, Anikó, Bán, Ágnes, Polgár, Beáta, Szolcsányi, János, Pintér, Erika
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analgesics - toxicity; Animals; Axotomy; Binding sites; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Capsaicin; Capsaicin receptors; Cell Biology; Denervation; Diterpenes - toxicity; Drug dosages; Femoral Nerve - injuries; Foot; Gene expression; Gene Expression Regulation - physiology; Hindlimb; Immunohistochemistry; Inflammation; Kinases; Male; Microscopy, Fluorescence; Mouth Mucosa - metabolism; Mucosa; Nervous system; Neurochemistry; Neurology; Neurosciences; Neurotoxins; Organ Specificity; Pain; Polymerase chain reaction; Proteins; Proteomics; Rats; resiniferatoxin; RNA, Messenger - biosynthesis; RNA, Messenger - genetics; Sciatic Nerve - injuries; Sensory neurons; Skin; Skin - metabolism; Sympathectomy, Chemical; transient receptor potential proteins; TRPV Cation Channels - biosynthesis; TRPV Cation Channels - genetics
• ISSN: 0895-8696; 1559-1166
• DOI: 10.1007/s12031-012-9766-9

Pretreatment with the ultrapotent capsaicin analog resiniferatoxin (RTX) has been applied as a selective pharmacological tool in inflammation and pain studies to desensitize transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) receptor-expressing sensory nerve endings. The discovery of TRPV1 receptor on non-neural cells challenges systemic RTX desensitization as a method acting exclusively on a population of sensory neurons, but not on non-neural cells. Systemic RTX desensitization was used for chemical denervation and transection of the sciatic and saphenous nerves for surgical denervation in rats. Quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry were applied to investigate the presence and alterations of the TRPV1 receptor mRNA and protein following chemical and surgical denervation. We provided the first evidence for non-neural TRPV1 immunopositivity and mRNA expression in the rat dorsal paw and plantar skin as well as the oral mucosa. Neither chemical nor surgical denervation influenced the level of TRPV1 receptor mRNA and protein expression in non-neural cells of either skin regions or mucosa. Therefore, RTX and consequently capsaicin remain to be considered as selective neurotoxins for a population of primary afferent neurons.