Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0030193 (pain)
 261,466 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The mechanism of the analgesic activity of paracetamol (acetaminophen), one of the most widely used drugs for the treatment of pain, is still not clear. Here we show that in rats, using the hot plate test, the analgesic effect of paracetamol is prevented by two antagonists at cannabinoid CB1 receptors (AM281 and SR141716A) at doses that prevent the analgesic activity of the cannabinoid CB1 agonist HU210. Our present results suggest that paracetamol-induced antinociception involves the cannabinoid system.
 ...
PMID:The analgesic activity of paracetamol is prevented by the blockade of cannabinoid CB1 receptors. 1643 52

Anandamide, an endocannabinoid, is degraded by the enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase which can be inhibited by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). The present work was designed to study the peripheral interactions between anandamide and ibuprofen (a non-specific cyclooxygenase inhibitor) in the rat formalin test. We first determined the ED50 for anandamide (0.018 microg +/- 0.009), ibuprofen (0.18 microg +/- 0.09), and their combination (0.006 microg +/- 0.002). Drugs were given 15 min before a 2.5% formalin injection into the dorsal surface of the right hind paw. Results were analyzed using isobolographic analysis. The antinociceptive interaction between anandamide and ibuprofen was synergistic. To further investigate the mechanisms by which the combination of anandamide with ibuprofen produced their antinociceptive effects, we used specific antagonists for the cannabinoid CB1 (AM251; 80 microg) and CB2 (AM630; 25 microg) receptors. We demonstrated that the antinociceptive effects of ibuprofen were not antagonized by either AM251 or AM630 and that those of anandamide were antagonized by AM251 but not by AM630. The synergistic antinociceptive effects of the combination of anandamide with ibuprofen were completely antagonized by AM251 but only partially inhibited by AM630. In conclusion, locally (hind paw) injected anandamide, ibuprofen or combination thereof decreased pain behavior in the formalin test. The combination of anandamide with ibuprofen produced synergistic antinociceptive effects involving both cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors. Comprehension of the mechanisms involved needs further investigation.
Pain 2006 Mar
PMID:Local interactions between anandamide, an endocannabinoid, and ibuprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, in acute and inflammatory pain. 1648 Aug 22

Neuropathic pain is one of the most inextricable problems encountered in clinics, because few facts are known about its etiology. Nerve injury often leads to allodynia and hyperalgesia, which are symptoms of neuropathic pain. The aim of this study was to understand some molecular and electrophysiological mechanisms of neuropathic pain after chronic constriction of the saphenous nerve (CCS) in mice. After surgery, CCS mice displayed significant allodynia and hyperalgesia, which were sensitive to acute systemic injection of morphine (4 mg/kg), gabapentin (50 mg/kg), amitriptyline (10 mg/kg), and the cannabinoid agonist WIN 55,212-2 (5 mg/kg). These behavioral changes were accompanied after surgery by an increase of c-Fos expression and by an overexpression of mu-opioid and cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors in the spinal cord and the dorsal hind paw skin. In combination with the skin-nerve preparation, this model showed a decrease in functional receptive fields downstream to the injury and the apparition of A-fiber ectopic discharges. In conclusion, CCS injury induced behavioral, molecular, and electrophysiological rearrangements that might help us in better understanding the peripheral mechanisms of neuropathic pain. This model takes advantage of the possible use in the future of genetically modified mice and of an exclusively sensory nerve for a comprehensive study of peripheral mechanisms of neuropathic pain.
 ...
PMID:Characterization of chronic constriction of the saphenous nerve, a model of neuropathic pain in mice showing rapid molecular and electrophysiological changes. 1651 71

Management of acute pain remains a significant clinical problem. In preclinical studies, CB2 cannabinoid receptor-selective agonists inhibit nociception without producing central nervous system side effects. The CB2 receptor-selective agonist AM1241 produces antinociceptive effects that are antagonized by CB2, but not CB1, receptor-selective antagonists, suggesting that activation of CB2 receptors results in antinociception. However, it has not been possible to definitively demonstrate that these effects are mediated by CB2 receptors, because we have lacked the pharmacological tools to confirm the in vivo receptor selectivity of the antagonists used. Further, recent evidence for cannabinoid-like receptors beyond CB1 and CB2 raises the possibility that AM1241 exerts its antinociceptive effects at uncharacterized CB2-like receptors that are also inhibited by AM630. The experiments reported here further test the hypothesis that CB2 receptor activation inhibits nociception. They evaluated the antinociceptive actions of AM1241 and the less-selective CB2 receptor agonist WIN55,212-2 in wild-type (CB2+/+) mice and in mice with genetic disruption of the CB2 receptor (CB2-/- mice). AM1241 inhibited thermal nociception in CB2+/+ mice, but had no effect in CB2-/- littermates. WIN55,212-2 produced equivalent antinociception in CB1+/+ and CB1-/- mice, while its antinociceptive effects were reduced in CB2-/- compared to CB2+/+ mice. The effects of morphine were not altered in CB2-/- compared to CB2+/+ mice. These data strongly suggest that AM1241 produces antinociception in vivo by activating CB2 cannabinoid receptors. Further, they confirm the potential therapeutic relevance of CB2 cannabinoid receptors for the treatment of acute pain.
Pain 2006 May
PMID:CB2 cannabinoid receptor mediation of antinociception. 1656 25

Mammalian tissues express at least two cannabinoid receptor types, CB1 and CB2, both G protein coupled. CB1 receptors are found predominantly at nerve terminals where they mediate inhibition of transmitter release. CB2 receptors occur mainly on immune cells, one of their roles being to modulate cytokine release. Endogenous agonists for cannabinoid receptors also exist, and are all eicosanoids. The first-discovered of these 'endocannabinoids' was arachidonoylethanolamide and there is convincing evidence that this ligand and some of its metabolites can activate vanilloid VRI (TRPV1) receptors. Certain cannabinoids also appear to have TRPV1-like and/or non-CB1, non-CB2, non-TRPV1 targets. Several CB1- and CB2-selective agonists and antagonists have been developed. Antagonists include the CB1-selective SR141716A, AM251, AM281 and LY320135, and the CB2-selective SR144528 and AM630. These all behave as inverse agonists, one indication that CB1 and CB2 receptors can exist in a constitutively active state. 'Neutral' cannabinoid receptor antagonists have also been developed. CB1 and/or CB2 receptor activation appears to ameliorate inflammatory and neuropathic pain and certain multiple sclerosis symptoms. This might be exploited clinically by using CB1, CB2 or CB1/CB2 agonists, or inhibitors of the membrane transport or catabolism of endocannabinoids that are released in increased amounts, at least in animal models of pain and multiple sclerosis. We have recently discovered the presence of an allosteric site on the CB1 receptor. Consequently, it may also prove possible to enhance 'autoprotective' effects of released endocannabinoids with CB1 allosteric enhancers or, indeed, to reduce proposed 'autoimpairing' effects of released endocannabinoids such as excessive food intake with CB1 allosteric antagonists.
 ...
PMID:The pharmacology of cannabinoid receptors and their ligands: an overview. 1657 99

The endocannabinoid system has been involved in the control of several neurophysiological and behavioural responses. To date, three lines of CB1 knockout mice have been established independently in different laboratories. This chapter reviews the main results obtained with these lines of CB1 knockout mice in several physiological responses that have been previously related to the activity of the endocannabinoid system. Studies using CB1 knockout mice have demonstrated that this receptor participates in the control of several behavioural responses including locomotion, anxiety- and depressive-like states, cognitive functions such as memory and learning processes, cardiovascular responses and feeding. Furthermore, the CB1 cannabinoid receptor is involved in the control of pain by acting at peripheral, spinal and supraspinal levels. The involvement of the CB1 cannabinoid receptor in the behavioural and biochemical processes underlying drug addiction has also been investigated. These CB1 knockouts have provided new findings to clarify the interactions between cannabinoids and the other drugs of abuse such as opioids, psychostimulants, nicotine and ethanol. Recent studies have demonstrated that endocannabinoids can function as retrograde messengers, modulating the release of different neurotransmitters, including opioids, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and cholecystokinin (CCK), which could explain some of the responses observed after the stimulation of the CB1 cannabinoid receptor. This review provides an update of the apparently controversial data reported in the literature using the three different lines of CB1 knockout mice, which seem to be mainly due to the use of different experimental procedures rather than any constitutive alteration in these lines of knockouts.
 ...
PMID:Analysis of the endocannabinoid system by using CB1 cannabinoid receptor knockout mice. 1659 73

A large body of literature indicates that cannabinoids suppress behavioral responses to acute and persistent noxious stimulation in animals. This review examines neuroanatomical, behavioral, and neurophysiological evidence supporting a role for cannabinoids in suppressing pain at spinal, supraspinal, and peripheral levels. Localization studies employing receptor binding and quantitative autoradiography, immunocytochemistry, and in situ hybridization are reviewed to examine the distribution of cannabinoid receptors at these levels and provide a neuroanatomical framework with which to understand the roles of endogenous cannabinoids in sensory processing. Pharmacological and transgenic approaches that have been used to study cannabinoid antinociceptive mechanisms are described. These studies provide insight into the functional roles of cannabinoid CB1 (CB1R) and CB2 (CB2R) receptor subtypes in cannabinoid antinociceptive mechanisms, as revealed in animal models of acute and persistent pain. The role of endocannabinoids and related fatty acid amides that are implicated in endogenous mechanisms for pain suppression are discussed. Human studies evaluating therapeutic potential of cannabinoid pharmacotherapies in experimental and clinical pain syndromes are evaluated. The potential of exploiting cannabinoid antinociceptive mechanisms in novel pharmacotherapies for pain is discussed.
 ...
PMID:Cannabinoid mechanisms of pain suppression. 1659 86

Lacosamide (LCM) is anticonvulsant in animal models and is in phase 3 assessment for epilepsy and neuropathic pain. Here we seek to identify cellular actions for the new drug and effects on recognised target sites for anticonvulsant drugs. Radioligand binding and electrophysiology were used to study the effects of LCM at well-established mammalian targets for clinical anticonvulsants. 10 microM LCM did not bind with high affinity to a plethora of rodent, guinea pig or human receptor sites including: AMPA; Kainate; NMDA (glycine/PCP/MK801); GABA(A) (muscimol/benzodiazepine); GABA(B); adenosine A1,2,3; alpha1, alpha2; beta1, beta2; M1,2,3,4,5; H1,2,3; CB1,2; D1,2,3,4,5; 5HT1A,1B,2A,2C,3,5A,6,7 and KATP. Weak displacement (25%) was evident at batrachotoxin site 2 on voltage gated Na+ channels. LCM did not inhibit neurotransmitter transport mechanisms for norepinephrine, dopamine, 5-HT or GABA, nor did it inhibit GABA transaminase. LCM at 100 microM produced a significant reduction in the incidence of excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSC's) and inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSC's) in cultured cortical cells and blocked spontaneous action potentials (EC50 61 microM). LCM did not alter resting membrane potential or passive membrane properties following application of voltage ramps between -70 to +20 mV. The voltage-gated sodium channel (VGSC) blocker phenytoin potently blocked sustained repetitive firing (SRF) but, in contrast, 100 microM LCM failed to block SRF. No effect was observed on voltage-clamped Ca2+ channels (T-, L-, N- or P-type). Delayed-rectifier or A-type potassium currents were not modulated by LCM (100 microM). LCM did not mimic the effects of diazepam as an allosteric modulator of GABA(A) receptor currents, nor did it significantly modulate evoked excitatory neurotransmission mediated by NMDA or AMPA receptors (n > or = 5). Evidently LCM perturbs excitability in primary cortical cultures but does not appear to do so via a high-affinity interaction with an acknowledged recognition site on a target for existing antiepileptic drugs.
 ...
PMID:Seeking a mechanism of action for the novel anticonvulsant lacosamide. 1662 Aug 82

mu-Opioid (MOP) and cannabinoid CB1 receptors mediate overlapping pharmacological responses in clinically important areas such as drug abuse and pain management, and functional interactions between agonists at these receptors have long been recognized. In the present issue of this Journal, Rios and co-workers have provided the first strong evidence that the two receptors interact directly when coexpressed in the same cells. The authors report a close physical association between MOP and CB1 receptors and novel pharmacological interactions of MOP and CB1 agonists. They argue that MOP/CB1 heterodimer formation explains these interactions. If correct, the direct interaction of MOP and CB1 pharmacophores in a quaternary complex would provide real benefits by opening the potential for development of novel MOP/CB1 small molecules or new strategies for use of current ligands. However, a lot more evidence will be required before the heterodimer interpretation can be accepted. If it turns out that MOP and CB1 receptors do not readily form hetero-oligomers, the study by Rios and co-workers shows that they are still friends but there may be few benefits.
 ...
PMID:Opioid and cannabinoid receptors: friends with benefits or just close friends? 1668 64

Cannabinoids act on various regions in the nervous system to modulate neuronal activity including nociception. Here, we investigated CB1 receptor expression in primary afferent neurons in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and the efficacy of a local (intraplantar) application of the selective CB1 agonist, 2-arachidonyl-2-chloroethylamide (ACEA), on inflammatory thermal hyperalgesia. In situ hybridization showed normal CB1 mRNA expression in 28% of DRG neurons. Peripheral inflammation by CFA (complete Freund's adjuvant) significantly increased the ratio of CB1 mRNA-positive neurons to 43%, primarily with increase in NF200-negative C-fiber nociceptors. Furthermore, CB1 and TRPV1 (transient potential receptor vanilloid subtype-1) co-localization was increased from 41% before inflammation to 67% two days after inflammation. Inflammation also increased CB1 immunoreactivity in DRG neurons and in nerve fibers of the hindpaw dermis, indicating increased CB1 transport from the cell body to the peripheral nerve. The intraplantar application of ACEA attenuated CFA-induced thermal hyperalgesia. The antinociceptive properties of ACEA became more prominent at 2 days after inflammation, compared with those in non-inflamed and inflamed animals at 8 h. These results suggest that CB1 expression in primary afferent neurons is increased by inflammation and that the subsequent increase in CB1 transport to peripheral axons contributes to the increased antihyperalgesic efficacy of locally administered CB1 agonist.
Pain 2006 Sep
PMID:Induction of CB1 cannabinoid receptor by inflammation in primary afferent neurons facilitates antihyperalgesic effect of peripheral CB1 agonist. 1670 43


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>