Editorial

The cover of this issue relates to an article by Greg Weir and colleagues who describe a chemogenetic strategy to treat experimental neuropathic pain. Chemogenetics refers to the expression of an exogenous receptor, most commonly using a viral vector, which can subsequently be activated by a chemical ligand to trigger a biological action. Weir et al. targeted a mutated glutamate-gated chloride channel from C. elegans, modified to render it insensitive to glutamate, to dorsal root ganglia neurons of mice that had received a peripheral nerve injury to model neuropathic pain. Upon treatment with the anthelmintic drug ivermectin to activate the channel, treated mice exhibited less pain-related hypersensitivity behaviour, as expected from chloride-channel mediated inhibition of nociceptors. In an accompanying Scientific Commentary Allan Basbaum considers some of the challenges to bring such a strategy to the clinic.

http://ift.tt/2yHemfn