CPEB3 Deficiency Elevates TRPV1 Expression in Dorsal Root Ganglia Neurons to Potentiate Thermosensation

PLoS One. 2016 Feb 25;11(2):e0148491. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0148491. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein 3 (CPEB3) is a sequence-specific RNA-binding protein that downregulates translation of multiple plasticity-related proteins (PRPs) at the glutamatergic synapses. Activity-induced synthesis of PRPs maintains long-lasting synaptic changes that are critical for memory consolidation and chronic pain manifestation. CPEB3-knockout (KO) mice show aberrant hippocampus-related plasticity and memory, so we investigated whether CPEB3 might have a role in nociception-associated plasticity. CPEB3 is widely expressed in the brain and peripheral afferent sensory neurons. CPEB3-KO mice with normal mechanosensation showed hypersensitivity to noxious heat. In the complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced inflammatory pain model, CPEB3-KO animals showed normal thermal hyperalgesia and transiently enhanced mechanical hyperalgesia. Translation of transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) RNA was suppressed by CPEB3 in dorsal root ganglia (DRG), whereas CFA-induced inflammation reversed this inhibition. Moreover, CPEB3/TRPV1 double-KO mice behaved like TRPV1-KO mice, with severely impaired thermosensation and thermal hyperalgesia. An enhanced thermal response was recapitulated in non-inflamed but not inflamed conditional-KO mice, with cpeb3 gene ablated mostly but not completely, in small-diameter nociceptive DRG neurons. CPEB3-regulated translation of TRPV1 RNA may play a role in fine-tuning thermal sensitivity of nociceptors.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Female
  • Ganglia, Spinal / physiology*
  • Hyperalgesia / genetics
  • Hyperalgesia / physiopathology
  • Inflammation / physiopathology
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Models, Neurological
  • Neuronal Plasticity / physiology
  • Nociceptors / physiology*
  • Pain Threshold / physiology
  • RNA / genetics
  • RNA / metabolism
  • RNA-Binding Proteins / genetics
  • RNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • TRPV Cation Channels / deficiency
  • TRPV Cation Channels / genetics*
  • Thermosensing / physiology*
  • Up-Regulation

Substances

  • Cpeb3 protein, mouse
  • RNA-Binding Proteins
  • TRPV Cation Channels
  • TRPV1 protein, mouse
  • RNA

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Ministry of Science and Technology [MOST 102-2628-B-001-007-MY3 and MOST102-2321-B-001-058 to YSH] and Academia Sinica [AS-103-TP-B05 to YSH] in Taiwan. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.