iPSCs and DRGs: stepping stones to new pain therapies.

Abstract

There is a pressing need for more effective nonaddictive treatment options for pain. Pain signals are transmitted from the periphery into the spinal cord via dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons, whose excitability is driven by voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels. Three NaV channels (NaV1.7, NaV1.8, and NaV1.9), preferentially expressed in DRG neurons, play important roles in pain signaling in humans. Blockade of these channels may provide a novel approach to the treatment of pain, but clinical translation of preclinical results has been challenging, in part due to differences between rodent and human DRG neurons. Human DRG neurons and iPSC-derived sensory neurons (iPSC-SNs) provide new preclinical platforms that may facilitate the development of novel pain therapeutics.

• Authors: Matthew Alsaloum, Stephen G Waxman
• Journal: Trends in molecular medicine (Trends Mol Med) Vol. 28 Issue 2 Pg. 110-122 (02 2022) ISSN: 1471-499X [Electronic] England
• PMID: 34933815 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Topics

• Diagnosis-Related Groups
• Ganglia, Spinal
• Humans
• Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
• Neurons (physiology)
• Pain (drug therapy, etiology)