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Repurposing a leukocyte elastase inhibitor for neuropathic pain

Nature Medicine volume 21, pages 429–430 (2015)Cite this article

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Neuropathic pain is a debilitating condition affecting millions of people worldwide. A new study investigates mechanisms of neuropathic pain initiation and identifies a promising therapeutic currently used for acute respiratory distress syndrome that may also limit acute neuropathic pain.

The authors began by investigating a pair of genetically similar outbred rat strains selected for their differential hypersensitivity to mechanical stimuli following neuropathic injury. Gene expression analysis revealed that Serpina3n expression in the DRG was much greater in the rat strain with low pain after neuropathic injury compared to the rat strain with high pain. Further inquiry then revealed that Serpina3n expression is also upregulated in the sensory neurons of mice subjected to a painful spinal nerve injury (SNI) as compared with sham-treated mice.

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Figure 1: Vicuña et al. show that upon peripheral nerve injury, T cells infiltrate the dorsal root ganglion.

Kim Caesar/Nature Publishing Group

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Andy D. Weyer and Cheryl L. Stucky are in the department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology, and Anatomy, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.,

    Andy D Weyer & Cheryl L Stucky

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  1. Andy D Weyer
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  2. Cheryl L Stucky
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Correspondence to Cheryl L Stucky.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Weyer, A., Stucky, C. Repurposing a leukocyte elastase inhibitor for neuropathic pain. Nat Med 21, 429–430 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm.3861

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