Turning Up The Heat On Pain: Trpv1 Receptors In Pain And Inflammation (progress In Inflammation Research)
by Annika B. Malmberg /
2005 / English / PDF
2.2 MB Download
Despite tremendous advances in the understanding of the sensory
nervous system which have accompanied the recent explosive growth
of the neurosciences, rema- ably few innovative medicines directed
towards pain and inflammation are ava- able. Indeed, many patients
are still prescribed analgesic and anti-inflammatory medications
that were identified long ago as components of herbal remedies. Si-
larly, potential new medicines in clinical evaluation based on
capsaicin and the c- saicin receptor are both grounded firmly on
folk traditions and yet rely upon the most contemporary techniques
of drug discovery and delivery. The first formal report of the
pain-relieving properties of capsaicin appeared in 1850 [1].
However, for centuries before this, capsaicin-containing extracts
had been used as folk medicines in cultures with access to pepper
plants, much in the same way as poppy or willow-bark extracts were.
Despite widespread use, it was not until 1878 that the selective
action of capsaicin on the sensory nervous system was r- ognized
[2]. In Chapter 1 of this volume, Janos Szolcsányi reviews this
early research, which culminated with the seminal studies of
Nicholas Jansco and his c- leagues in Hungary in the 1940s. Since
then, capsaicin and related vanilloid c- pounds have played a
prominent role in analgesia and inflammation investigations because
of their ability to selectively activate a subpopulation of sensory
neurons and produce sensations of pain and localized erythema.
Despite tremendous advances in the understanding of the sensory
nervous system which have accompanied the recent explosive growth
of the neurosciences, rema- ably few innovative medicines directed
towards pain and inflammation are ava- able. Indeed, many patients
are still prescribed analgesic and anti-inflammatory medications
that were identified long ago as components of herbal remedies. Si-
larly, potential new medicines in clinical evaluation based on
capsaicin and the c- saicin receptor are both grounded firmly on
folk traditions and yet rely upon the most contemporary techniques
of drug discovery and delivery. The first formal report of the
pain-relieving properties of capsaicin appeared in 1850 [1].
However, for centuries before this, capsaicin-containing extracts
had been used as folk medicines in cultures with access to pepper
plants, much in the same way as poppy or willow-bark extracts were.
Despite widespread use, it was not until 1878 that the selective
action of capsaicin on the sensory nervous system was r- ognized
[2]. In Chapter 1 of this volume, Janos Szolcsányi reviews this
early research, which culminated with the seminal studies of
Nicholas Jansco and his c- leagues in Hungary in the 1940s. Since
then, capsaicin and related vanilloid c- pounds have played a
prominent role in analgesia and inflammation investigations because
of their ability to selectively activate a subpopulation of sensory
neurons and produce sensations of pain and localized erythema.
