ABSTRACT
Model for Nociception...................................................................214 Mutations in a TRPA Ion Channel Increase Mechanical and Thermal Nociception Thresholds ...................................................................214 Distinct Cellular and Molecular Pathways for Innocuous and Noxious Touch Detection in
Drosophila
.......................................................216 Thermo TRP Channels Are Temperature Sensors in Mammals...........................217 Multiple TRPA Channels Are Heat Activated in Flies .........................................218 Evidence for Combinatorial Encoding of Temperature Response .......................218 Putative Functions for the High-Threshold and Low-Threshold Types of Thermosensory Neurons ...................................................................................221 The Mammalian TRPA1 Channel Is Activated by Irritants That Elicit Sensations of Burning Pain.................................................................222 TRP Channels Have Been Implicated in Mechanotransduction ..........................222 References..............................................................................................................223
Pain is a major health problem. Despite the importance of adequate pain modulation in relieving patients’ suffering, the available pharmacological agents for treating pain are limited. Existing pain-treating drugs that predominantly target the cyclooxygenase and opioid pathways are often inadequate in providing relief from pain and can have undesirable side effects. A first step in improving the armamentarium of physicians in treating pain is identifying new molecular targets for analgesic drugs. In this chapter, I describe a system for using
