Cephalalgia : an international journal of headache
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The brain and the sensory nervous system contain a rich supply of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and CGRP receptor components. Clinical studies have demonstrated a correlation between CGRP release and acute migraine headache that led to the development of CGRP-specific drugs that either abort acute attacks of migraine (gepants) or are effective as prophylaxis (antibodies). However, there is still much discussion concerning the site of action of these drugs. ⋯ Therefore, it is reasonable to discuss the localization of CGRP and its receptor components in relation to the BBB. The trigeminovascular system, located outside the BBB, has a key role in migraine symptomatology, and it is likely targeted by the novel CGRP drugs that successfully terminate migraine headache.
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The neuropeptide calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) has now been established as a key player in migraine. However, the mechanisms underlying the reported elevation of CGRP in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid of some migraineurs are not known. A candidate mechanism is cortical spreading depression (CSD), which is associated with migraine with aura and traumatic brain injury. The aim of this study was to investigate whether CGRP gene expression may be induced by experimental CSD in the rat cerebral cortex. ⋯ Repeated CSD provides a mechanism for prolonged elevation of CGRP in the cerebral cortex, which may contribute to migraine and post-traumatic headache.