Estrogenic modulation of
pain is an exceedingly complex phenomenon. However, whether
estrogen is involved in discogenic
low back pain still remains unclear. Here, immunoreactivity staining technique was used to examine the expression level of the
estrogen receptors (ERα and ERβ) and a
pain related
neuropeptide,
Substance P in the lumbar intervertebral discs to analyze the relationship between the ERs and
Substance P. Nucleus pulposus tissues of 23 elderly female patients were harvested during spinal surgeries and made to detect the immunoreactivity staining of ERα, ERβ and
Substance P. The colocalization and intensities of ERs and
Substance P were explored and evaluated respectively. The correlations between changes of ERα, ERβ and
Substance P were also assessed.Our results revealed that
Substance P colocalized with ERα and ERβ both in cytoplasm and nucleus of the nucleus pulposus cells. HSCORE analysis indicated that
Substance P negatively correlated with both ERα and ERβ expression. Collectively, the crosstalk between ERs and
Substance P might exist in the disc tissue.
Estrogen-dependent
pain mechanism might partly be mediated through ERs and
Substance P in the nucleus pulposus of the elderly females.
Estrogen and its receptors might be drug targets in discogenic
low back pain diseases.