Browsing by Author "Megat, Salim"
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Item A Critical Role for Dopamine D5 Receptors in Pain Chronicity in Male Mice(Soc Neuroscience) Megat, Salim; Shiers, Stephanie; Moy, Jamie K.; Barragán-Iglesias, Paulino; Pradhan, Grishma; Megat, Salim; Dussor, Gregory; Price, Theodore J.; 0000-0003-2186-6770 (Megat, S); 0000-0002-9646-1850 (Shiers, S); 0000-0001-8579-5540 (Moy, JK); 0000-0003-3178-8606 (Barragán-Iglesias, P); 0000-0002-6971-6221 (Price, TJ); Megat, Salim; Shiers, Stephanie; Moy, Jamie K.; Barragan-Iglesias, Paulino; Pradhan, Grishma; Seal, Rebecca P.; Dussor, Gregory; Price, Theodore J.Dopaminergic modulation of spinal cord plasticity has long been recognized, but circuits affected by this system and the precise receptor subtypes involved in this modulation have not been defined. Dopaminergic modulation from the A11 nucleus of the hypothalamus contributes to plasticity in a model of chronic pain called hyperalgesic priming. Here we tested the hypothesis that the key receptor subtype mediating this effect is the D5 receptor (D5R). We find that a spinally directed lesion of dopaminergic neurons reverses hyperalgesic priming in both sexes and that a D1/D5 antagonist transiently inhibits neuropathic pain. We used mice lacking D5Rs (DRD5KO mice) to show that carrageenan, interleukin 6, as well as BDNF-induced hyperalgesia and priming are reduced specifically in male mice. These male DRD5KO mice also show reduced formalin pain responses and decreased heat pain. To characterize the subtypes of dorsal horn neurons engaged by dopamine signaling in the hyperalgesic priming model, we used c-fos labeling. We find that a mixed D1/D5 agonist given spinally to primed mice activates a subset of neurons in lamina III and IV of the dorsal horn that coexpress PAX2, a transcription factor for GABAergic interneurons. In line with this, we show that gabazine, a GABA-A receptor antagonist, is antihyperalgesic in primed mice exposed to spinal administration of a D1/D5 agonist. Therefore, the D5R, in males, and the D1R, in females, exert a powerful influence over spinal cord circuitry in pathological pain likely via modulation of deep dorsal horn GABAergic neurons.Item Haptic Stroke Testbed for Pharmacological Evaluation of Dynamic Allodynia in Mouse Models(IEEE Computer Society) Lee, Jin; Atwood, Brian J.; Megat, Salim; Dussor, Gregory; Price, Theodore J.; Fey, Ann Majewicz; Lee, Jin; Atwood, Brian J.; Megat, Salim; Dussor, Gregory; Price, Theodore J.; Fey, Ann MajewiczDynamic mechanical allodynia is an aggravating neuropathological condition in which light, physical touch leads to pain. Developing pharmaceutical agents to treat this condition requires extensive animal trials using a mouse model, and a laborious process of manually stroking inflicted mouse paws, with a brush or cotton swab, while recording responses to that stimulus. In this paper, we developed an autonomous testing mechanism to create repeatable stroking sensations for mice during dynamic allodynia testing. The chamber consists of a belt driven brush mechanism and light and dark chambers. Additionally, we conducted a human subjects study to determine the baseline variability in human-performed dynamic allodynia testing. Our tactile stoke display is capable of stroking a mouse paw between 1-5 mm/s with a repeatable force. In our human subject experiments, the user applied force ranged from 0.1-9.0 gF with a maximum standard deviation of 4.13 gF. In contrast, our device is capable of producing repeatable brush strokes at 0.69 gF (SD = 0.13 gF) and 1.78 gF (SD = 0.16 gF) for two brushes. Preliminary animal studies show that normal mice are not disturbed by the stroking sensation; however, mice afflicted with allodynia move away from it. On average the injured mice spent 90% of their time in a bright, adverse environment to avoid the brush, whereas normal mice only spent 40% of their time in the bright environment.Item Inhibition of Poly(A)-Binding Protein with a Synthetic RNA Mimic Reduces Pain Sensitization in Mice(Nature Publishing Group, 2018-10-22) Barragan-Iglesias, Paulino; Lou, Tzu-Fang; Bhat, Vandita D.; Megat, Salim; Burton, Michael D.; Price, Theodore J.; Campbell, Zachary T.; 0000-0002-6971-6221 (Price, TJ); 0000-0002-3768-6996 (Campbell, ZT); Barragan-Iglesias, Paulino; Lou, Tzu-Fang; Bhat, Vandita D.; Megat, Salim; Burton, Michael D.; Price, Theodore J.; Campbell, Zachary T.Nociceptors rely on cap-dependent translation to rapidly induce protein synthesis in response to pro-inflammatory signals. Comparatively little is known regarding the role of the regulatory factors bound to the 3' end of mRNA in nociceptor sensitization. Poly(A)-binding protein (PABP) stimulates translation initiation by bridging the Poly(A) tail to the eukaryotic initiation factor 4F complex associated with the mRNA cap. Here, we use unbiased assessment of PABP binding specificity to generate a chemically modified RNA-based competitive inhibitor of PABP. The resulting RNA mimic, which we designated as the Poly(A) SPOT-ON, is more stable than unmodified RNA and binds PABP with high affinity and selectivity in vitro. We show that injection of the Poly(A) SPOT-ON at the site of an injury can attenuate behavioral response to pain. Collectively, these results suggest that PABP is integral for nociceptive plasticity. The general strategy described here provides a broad new source of mechanism-based inhibitors for RNA-binding proteins and is applicable for in vivo studies.Item The MNK–eIF4E Signaling Axis Contributes to Injury-Induced Nociceptive Plasticity and the Development of Chronic Pain(Society for Neuroscience) Moy, Jamie K.; Khoutorsky, A.; Black, Brian J.; Kuhn, Jasper L.; Barragán-Iglesias, Paulino; Megat, Salim; Burton, Michael D.; Burgos-Vega, Carolina C.; Melemedjian, O. K.; Boitano, S.; Vagner, J.; Gkogkas, C. G.; Pancrazio, Joseph J.; Mogil, J. S.; Dussor, Gregory; Sonenberg, N.; Price, Theodore J.; 0000 0001 3721 4764 (Dussor, G); 0000-0001-8579-5540 (Moy, JK); 0000-0001-8571-6486 (Black, B); 0000-0001-6524-9411 (Kuhn JL); 0000-0003-3178-8606 (Barragán-Iglesias, P); 0000-0002-6971-6221 (Price, TJ); Moy, Jamie K.; Asiedu, Marina N.; Black, Brian J.; Kuhn, Jasper L.; Barragán-Iglesias, Paulino; Megat, Salim; Burton, Michael D.; Burgos-Vega, Carolina C.; Pancrazio, Joseph J.; Dussor, Gregory; Price, Theodore J.Injury-induced sensitization of nociceptors contributes to pain states and the development of chronic pain. Inhibiting activity-dependent mRNA translation through mechanistic target of rapamycin and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways blocks the development of nociceptor sensitization. These pathways convergently signal to the eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) 4F complex to regulate the sensitization of nociceptors, but the details of this process are ill defined. Here we investigated the hypothesis that phosphorylation of the 5β cap-binding protein eIF4E by its specific kinase MAPK interacting kinases (MNKs) 1/2 is a key factor in nociceptor sensitization and the development of chronic pain. Phosphorylation of ser209 on eIF4E regulates the translation of a subset of mRNAs. We show that pronociceptive and inflammatory factors, such as nerve growth factor (NGF), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and carrageenan, produce decreased mechanical and thermal hypersensitivity, decreased affective pain behaviors, and strongly reduced hyperalgesic priming in mice lacking eIF4E phosphorylation (eIF4ES209A). Tests were done in both sexes, and no sex differences were found. Moreover, in patch-clamp electrophysiology and Ca2+ imaging experiments on dorsal root ganglion neurons, NGF- and IL-6-induced increases in excitability were attenuated in neurons from eIF4ES209A mice. These effects were recapitulated in Mnk1/2-/- mice and with the MNK1/2 inhibitor cercosporamide. We also find that cold hypersensitivity induced by peripheral nerve injury is reduced in eIF4ES209A and Mnk1/2-/- mice and following cercosporamide treatment. Our findings demonstrate that the MNK1/2–eIF4E signaling axis is an important contributing factor to mechanisms of nociceptor plasticity and the development of chronic pain.Item Nociceptor Translational Profiling Reveals the Ragulator-Rag GTPase Complex as a Critical Generator of Neuropathic Pain(Soc Neuroscience, 2019-01-16) Megat, Salim; Ray, Pradipta R.; Moy, Jamie K.; Lou, Tzu-Fang; Barragan-Iglesias, Paulino; Li, Yan; Pradhan, Grishma; Wanghzou, Andi; Ahmad, Ayesha; Burton, Michael D.; North, Robert Y.; Dougherty, Patrick M.; Khoutorsky, Arkady; Sonenberg, Nahum; Webster, Nevin R.; Dussor, Gregory; Campbell, Zachary T.; Price, Theodore J.; 0000-0003-4281-3985 (Pradhan, G); 0000-0002-0628-824X (Burton, MD); 0000-0002-3768-6996 (Campbell, ZT); 0000-0002-6971-6221 (Price, TJ); Megat, Salim; Ray, Pradipta R.; Moy, Jamie K.; Lou, Tzu-Fang; Barragan-Iglesias, Paulino; Pradhan, Grishma; Wanghzou, Andi; Ahmad, Ayesha; Burton, Michael D.; Dussor, Gregory; Campbell, Zachary T.; Price, Theodore J.Nociceptors, sensory neurons in the DRG that detect damaging or potentially damaging stimuli, are key drivers of neuropathic pain. Injury to these neurons causes activation of translation regulation signaling, including the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and mitogen-activated protein kinase interacting kinase(MNK) eukaryotic initiation factor (eIF) 4E pathways. This is a mechanism driving changes in excitability of nociceptors that is critical for the generation of chronic pain states; however, the mRNAs that are translated to lead to this plasticity have not been elucidated. To address this gap in knowledge, we used translating ribosome affinity purification in male and female mice to comprehensively characterize mRNA translation in Scn10a-positive nociceptors in chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain (CIPN) caused by paclitaxel treatment. This unbiased method creates a new resource for the field, confirms many findings in the CIPN literature and also find extensive evidence for new target mechanisms that may cause CIPN. We provide evidence that an underlying mechanism of CIPN is sustained mTORC1 activation driven by MNK1-eIF4E signaling. RagA, aGTPase controlling mTORC1 activity, is identified as a novel target of MNK1-eIF4E signaling. This demonstrates a novel translation regulation signaling circuit wherein MNK1-eIF4E activity drives mTORC1 via control of RagA translation. CIPN and RagA translation are strongly attenuated by genetic ablation of eIF4E phosphorylation, MNK1 elimination or treatment with the MNK inhibitor eFT508. We identify a novel translational circuit for the genesis of neuropathic pain caused by chemotherapy with important implications for therapeutics.