Intrinsic adaptive plasticity in mouse and human sensory neurons.

In response to changes in activity induced by environmental cues, neurons in the central nervous system undergo homeostatic plasticity to sustain overall network function during abrupt changes in synaptic strengths. Homeostatic plasticity involves changes in synaptic scaling and regulation of intrinsic excitability. Increases in spontaneous firing and excitability of sensory neurons are evident in some forms of chronic pain in animal models and human patients.

Bradykinin receptor expression and bradykinin-mediated sensitization of human sensory neurons.

Bradykinin is a peptide implicated in inflammatory pain in both humans and rodents. In rodent sensory neurons, activation of B1 and B2 bradykinin receptors induces neuronal hyperexcitability. Recent evidence suggests that human and rodent dorsal root ganglia (DRG), which contain the cell bodies of sensory neurons, differ in the expression and function of key GPCRs and ion channels; whether bradykinin receptor expression and function are conserved across species has not been studied in depth.

Intrinsic Homeostatic Plasticity in Mouse and Human Sensory Neurons.

In response to changes in activity induced by environmental cues, neurons in the central nervous system undergo homeostatic plasticity to sustain overall network function during abrupt changes in synaptic strengths. Homeostatic plasticity involves changes in synaptic scaling and regulation of intrinsic excitability. Increases in spontaneous firing and excitability of sensory neurons are evident in some forms of chronic pain in animal models and human patients.

Bradykinin receptor expression and bradykinin-mediated sensitization of human sensory neurons.

Bradykinin is a peptide implicated in inflammatory pain in both humans and rodents. In rodent sensory neurons, activation of B1 and B2 bradykinin receptors induces neuronal hyperexcitability. Recent evidence suggests that human and rodent dorsal root ganglia (DRG), which contain the cell bodies of sensory neurons, differ in the expression and function of key GPCRs and ion channels; whether BK receptor expression and function are conserved across species has not been studied in depth.

TMEM120A/TACAN inhibits mechanically activated PIEZO2 channels.

PIEZO2 channels mediate rapidly adapting mechanically activated currents in peripheral sensory neurons of the dorsal root ganglia (DRG), and they are indispensable for light touch and proprioception. Relatively little is known about what other proteins regulate PIEZO2 activity in a cellular context. TMEM120A (TACAN) was proposed to act as a high threshold mechanically activated ion channel in nociceptive DRG neurons.

Crowding-induced opening of the mechanosensitive Piezo1 channel in silico.

Mechanosensitive Piezo1 channels are essential mechanotransduction proteins in eukaryotes. Their curved transmembrane domains, called arms, create a convex membrane deformation, or footprint, which is predicted to flatten in response to increased membrane tension. Here, using a hyperbolic tangent model, we show that, due to the intrinsic bending rigidity of the membrane, the overlap of neighboring Piezo1 footprints produces a flattening of the Piezo1 footprints and arms.

Gi-coupled receptor activation potentiates Piezo2 currents via Gβγ.

Mechanically activated Piezo2 channels are key players in somatosensory touch, but their regulation by cellular signaling pathways is poorly understood. Dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons express a variety of G-protein-coupled receptors that modulate the function of sensory ion channels. Gi-coupled receptors are generally considered inhibitory, as they usually decrease excitability.

Structure-based characterization of novel TRPV5 inhibitors.

Transient receptor potential vanilloid 5 (TRPV5) is a highly calcium selective ion channel that acts as the rate-limiting step of calcium reabsorption in the kidney. The lack of potent, specific modulators of TRPV5 has limited the ability to probe the contribution of TRPV5 in disease phenotypes such as hypercalcemia and nephrolithiasis. Here, we performed structure-based virtual screening (SBVS) at a previously identified TRPV5 inhibitor binding site coupled with electrophysiology screening and identified three novel inhibitors of TRPV5, one of which exhibits high affinity, and specificity for TRPV5 over other TRP channels, including its close homologue TRPV6.