Expression of DNA methyltransferases in adult dorsal root ganglia is cell-type specific and up regulated in a rodent model of neuropathic pain

Peripheral neuropathic pain is produced by multiple etiological factors that initiate a number of diverse mechanisms operating at different sites and at different times and expressed both within, and across different disease states. Unraveling the mechanisms involved requires laboratory animal models that replicate as far as possible, the different pathophysiological changes present in patients. It is unlikely that a single animal model will include the full range of neuropathic pain mechanisms. A feature of several animal models of peripheral neuropathic pain is partial denervation. In the most frequently used models a mixture of intact and injured fibers is created by loose ligation of either the whole (Bennett GJ, Xie YK. A peripheral mononeuropathy in rat that produces disorders of pain sensation like those seen in man. Pain 1988;33:87-107) or a tight ligation of a part (Seltzer Z, Dubner R, Shir Y. A novel behavioral model of neuropathic pain disorders produced in rats by partial sciatic nerve injury. Pain 1990;43:205-218) of a large peripheral nerve, or a tight ligation of an entire spinal segmental nerve (Kim SH, Chung JM. An experimental model for peripheral neuropathy produced by segmental spinal nerve ligation in the rat. Pain 1992;50:355-363). We have developed a variant of partial denervation, the spared nerve injury model. This involves a lesion of two of the three terminal branches of the sciatic nerve (tibial and common peroneal nerves) leaving the remaining sural nerve intact. The spared nerve injury model differs from the Chung spinal segmental nerve, the Bennett chronic constriction injury and the Seltzer partial sciatic nerve injury models in that the co-mingling of distal intact axons with degenerating axons is restricted, and it permits behavioral testing of the non-injured skin territories adjacent to the denervated areas. The spared nerve injury model results in early ( 6 months), robust (all animals are responders) behavioral modifications. The mechanical (von Frey and pinprick) sensitivity and thermal (hot and cold) responsiveness is increased in the ipsilateral sural and to a lesser extent saphenous territories, without any change in heat thermal thresholds. Crush injury of the tibial and common peroneal nerves produce similar early changes, which return, however to baseline at 7-9 weeks. The spared nerve injury model may provide, therefore, an additional resource for unraveling the mechanisms responsible for the production of neuropathic pain.

Neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system are often associated with impaired learning and memory, eventually leading to dementia. An important aspect in pre-clinical research is the exploration of strategies to re-establish learning ability and access to long-term memories. By using a mouse model that allows temporally and spatially restricted induction of neuronal loss, we show here that environmental enrichment reinstated learning behaviour and re-established access to long-term memories after significant brain atrophy and neuronal loss had already occurred. Environmental enrichment correlated with chromatin modifications (increased histone-tail acetylation). Moreover, increased histone acetylation by inhibitors of histone deacetylases induced sprouting of dendrites, an increased number of synapses, and reinstated learning behaviour and access to long-term memories. These data suggest that inhibition of histone deacetylases might be a suitable therapeutic avenue for neurodegenerative diseases associated with learning and memory impairment, and raises the possibility of recovery of long-term memories in patients with dementia.

Modern pain-control theory predicts that a loss of inhibition (disinhibition) in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord is a crucial substrate for chronic pain syndromes. However, the nature of the mechanisms that underlie such disinhibition has remained controversial. Here we present evidence for a novel mechanism of disinhibition following peripheral nerve injury. It involves a trans-synaptic reduction in the expression of the potassium-chloride exporter KCC2, and the consequent disruption of anion homeostasis in neurons of lamina I of the superficial dorsal horn, one of the main spinal nociceptive output pathways. In our experiments, the resulting shift in the transmembrane anion gradient caused normally inhibitory anionic synaptic currents to be excitatory, substantially driving up the net excitability of lamina I neurons. Local blockade or knock-down of the spinal KCC2 exporter in intact rats markedly reduced the nociceptive threshold, confirming that the reported disruption of anion homeostasis in lamina I neurons was sufficient to cause neuropathic pain.