Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN
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We comment on a recent paper of Wang et al. (J Mol Neurosci, 2014), who have shown that ketamine reduces neuregulin1-ErbB4 signaling in interneurons.
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Neuropathic pain is characterized by hyperalgesia, allodynia, and spontaneous pain. Recent studies have shown that glycoprotein nonmetastatic melanoma B (GPNMB) plays a pivotal role in neuronal survival and neuroprotection. However, the role of GPNMB in neuropathic pain remains unknown. ⋯ Furthermore, the intrathecal injection of siRNA1-GPNMB inhibited the expression of GPNMB and pro-inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) and alleviated mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia in the chronic constriction injury (CCI) model of rats. Taken together, our findings suggest that siRNA against GPNMB can alleviate the chronic neuropathic pain caused by CCI, and this effect may be mediated by attenuated expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in the spinal cord of CCI rats. Therefore, inhibition of GPNMB may provide a novel strategy for the treatment of neuropathic pain.