P2X receptors and acupuncture analgesia.

Abstract

Purinergic signaling has recently been suggested to constitute the cellular mechanism underlying acupuncture-induced analgesia (AA). By extending the original hypothesis on endogenous opioids being released during AA, Geoffrey Burnstock and Maiken Nedergaard supplied evidence for the involvement of purinoceptors (P2 and P1/A1 receptors) in the beneficial effects of AA. In view of certain pain states (e.g. neuropathic pain) which respond only poorly to therapy with standard analgesics, as well as with respect to the numerous unwanted effects of opioids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, it is of great significance to search for alternative therapeutic options. Because clinical studies on AA yielded sometimes heterogeneous results, it is of eminent importance to relay on experiments carried out on laboratory animals, by evaluating the data with stringent statistical methods including comparison with a sufficient number of control groups. In this review, we summarize the state of the art situation with respect to the participation of P2 receptors in AA and try to forecast how the field is likely to move forward in the future.

• Authors: Yong Tang, Hai-Yan Yin, Juan Liu, Patrizia Rubini, Peter Illes
• Journal: Brain research bulletin (Brain Res Bull) Vol. 151 Pg. 144-152 (09 2019) ISSN: 1873-2747 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 30458249 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Analgesics
• Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal
• Receptors, Purinergic P2X
• Adenosine Triphosphate

Topics

• Acupuncture Analgesia (methods)
• Adenosine Triphosphate (metabolism, pharmacology)
• Analgesics (therapeutic use)
• Animals
• Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal (therapeutic use)
• Humans
• Pain (drug therapy)
• Receptors, Purinergic P2X (metabolism, physiology)
• Signal Transduction (physiology)