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Inhibition of Muscular Nociceptive Afferents via the Activation of Cutaneous Nociceptors in a Rat Model of Inflammatory Muscle Pain

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Abstract

Topical irritants such as capsaicin (CAP), peppermint oil (PO), and mustard oil (MO) are effective in relieving inflammatory muscle pain. We investigated the effects of topical irritants in a rat model of inflammatory muscle pain produced by injecting complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA) into the tibialis anterior muscle. CFA-induced mechanical hypersensitivity and the spontaneous activity of muscular nociceptive afferents, and decreased weight-bearing of the hindlimb were relieved by topical application of CAP, PO, or MO on the skin overlying the inflamed muscle. The effects of topical irritants were abolished when applied to the skin on the ipsilateral plantar region or on the contralateral leg, or when the relevant cutaneous nerve or dorsal root was transected. Our results demonstrated that topical irritants may alleviate inflammatory muscle pain via activating cutaneous nociceptors and subsequently inhibiting the abnormal activity of muscular nociceptive neurons.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Bo Yuan and Tao Wang from the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China, for technical assistance. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81771205 and 91632113), the Natural Science Foundation and Major Basic Research Program of Shanghai Municipality, China (16JC1420500 and 16JC1420502), the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences (2017-I2M-3-008), and the National Natural Science Foundation for Young Scientists of China (81600956).

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Author notes

  1. Yehong Fang and Jie Zhu have contributed equally to the work and share first authorship.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Human Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, Neuroscience Center, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, School of Basic Medicine, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100005, China

    Yehong Fang, Jie Zhu, Yikuan Xie & Chao Ma

  2. Joint Laboratory of Anesthesia and Pain, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100730, China

    Yehong Fang

  3. Department of Radiation Oncology, Sichuan Cancer Hospital and Institute, Sichuan Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610054, China

    Jie Zhu

  4. Department of Neurosurgery, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100053, China

    Wanru Duan

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  1. Yehong Fang
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  2. Jie Zhu
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  3. Wanru Duan
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  4. Yikuan Xie
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  5. Chao Ma
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Correspondence to Chao Ma.

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Fang, Y., Zhu, J., Duan, W. et al. Inhibition of Muscular Nociceptive Afferents via the Activation of Cutaneous Nociceptors in a Rat Model of Inflammatory Muscle Pain. Neurosci. Bull. 36, 1–10 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12264-019-00406-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12264-019-00406-4

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