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Resolvins RvE1 and RvD1 attenuate inflammatory pain via central and peripheral actions

2010; Nature Portfolio; Volume: 16; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1038/nm.2123

1546-170X

Zhen‐Zhong Xu, Ling Zhang, Tong Liu, Jong Yeon Park, Temugin Berta, Yang Rong, Charles N. Serhan, Ru‐Rong Ji,

Inflammatory mediators and NSAID effects

The omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid alleviate inflammatory pain in patients. Ru-Rong Ji and his colleagues find that the resolvins RvE1 and RvD1, which are derived from omega-3 fatty acids, potently reduce pain in a number of animal models of inflammatory pain. These effects are mediated by both peripheral and central mechanisms and suggest that resolvins may represent a new class of analgesics for inflammatory pain ( pages 518–520 ). Inflammatory pain, such as arthritis pain, is a growing health problem1. Inflammatory pain is generally treated with opioids and cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitors, but both are limited by side effects. Recently, resolvins, a unique family of lipid mediators, including RvE1 and RvD1 derived from omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, have shown marked potency in treating disease conditions associated with inflammation2,3. Here we report that peripheral (intraplantar) or spinal (intrathecal) administration of RvE1 or RvD1 in mice potently reduces inflammatory pain behaviors induced by intraplantar injection of formalin, carrageenan or complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), without affecting basal pain perception. Intrathecal RvE1 injection also inhibits spontaneous pain and heat and mechanical hypersensitivity evoked by intrathecal capsaicin and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). RvE1 has anti-inflammatory activity by reducing neutrophil infiltration, paw edema and proinflammatory cytokine expression. RvE1 also abolishes transient receptor potential vanilloid subtype-1 (TRPV1)- and TNF-α–induced excitatory postsynaptic current increases and TNF-α–evoked N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor hyperactivity in spinal dorsal horn neurons via inhibition of the extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway. Thus, we show a previously unknown role for resolvins in normalizing the spinal synaptic plasticity that has been implicated in generating pain hypersensitivity. Given the potency of resolvins and the well-known side effects of opioids and COX inhibitors, resolvins may represent new analgesics for treating inflammatory pain.