A role for ASIC3 in the modulation of high-intensity pain stimuli

Chih Cheng Chen, Anne Zimmer, Wei Hsin Sun, Jennifer Hall, Michael J. Brownstein, Andreas Zimmer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

277 Scopus citations

Abstract

Acid-sensing ion channel 3 (ASIC3), a proton-gated ion channel of the degenerins/epithelial sodium channel (DEG/ENaC) receptor family is expressed predominantly in sensory neurons including nociceptive neurons responding to protons. To study the role of ASIC3 in pain signaling, we generated ASIC3 knockout mice. Mutant animals were healthy and responded normally to most sensory stimuli. However, in behavioral assays for pain responses, ASIC3 null mutant mice displayed a reduced latency to the onset of pain responses, or more pain-related behaviors, when stimuli of moderate to high intensity were used. This unexpected effect seemed independent of the modality of the stimulus and was observed in the acetic acid-induced writhing test (0.6 vs. 0.1-0.5%), in the hot-plate test (52.5 and 55 vs. 50°C), and in tests for mechanically induced pain (tail-pinch vs. von Frey filaments). We postulate that ASIC3 is involved in modulating moderate- to high-intensity pain sensation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)8992-8997
Number of pages6
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume99
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - 25 Jun 2002

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