Kappa Opioid Receptor Distribution and Function in Primary Afferents.

ABSTRACT: Primary afferents are known to be inhibited by kappa opioid receptor (KOR) signaling. However, the specific types of somatosensory neurons that express KOR remain unclear. Here, using a newly developed KOR-cre knockin allele, viral tracing, single-cell RT-PCR, and ex vivo recordings, we show that KOR is expressed in several populations of primary afferents: a subset of peptidergic sensory neurons, as well as low-threshold mechanoreceptors that form lanceolate or circumferential endings around hair follicles. We find that KOR acts centrally to inhibit excitatory neurotransmission from KOR-cre afferents in laminae I and III, and this effect is likely due to KOR-mediated inhibition of Ca²⁺ influx, which we observed in sensory neurons from both mouse and human. In the periphery, KOR

SUBMITTER: Snyder LM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6300132 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature