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J Neurophysiol 92: 2323-2332, 2004. First published June 2, 2004; doi:10.1152/jn.00355.2004
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Voltage-Gated Ion Channels in Nociceptors: Modulation by cGMP

L. Liu1, T. Yang2, M. J. Bruno4, O. S. Andersen4 and S. A. Simon1,2,3

Departments of 1Anesthesiology, 2Neurobiology and 3Neuroengineering, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710; and 4Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York 10021

Submitted 6 April 2004; accepted in final form 1 June 2004


    ABSTRACT
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
In tissue or nerve injury, proinflammatory mediators are released that can modulate a variety of ion channels found in nociceptors. The changes in channel activity, which primarily occurs through changes in intracellular pathways, may lead to the pathological states of hyperalgesia and allodynia. To understand further the regulatory mechanisms underlying the changes in channel activity, we used whole cell patch-clamp recordings from capsaicin-sensitive nociceptive neurons in rat trigeminal ganglion neurons to examine how the cGMP-dependent pathways may regulate ion channel function. Addition of the 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)-3',5' (CPT)-cGMP, a membrane permeant modulator of ion channels, decreased the number of evoked action potentials by 36% and inhibited the tetrodotoxin-resistant (TTX-R) sodium currents and IA potassium currents by 37 and 32%, respectively. Delayed rectifier potassium (IK) currents were unaffected, suggesting that the effects of CPT-cGMP are unlikely to arise from a nonspecific effect on channel activity as a consequence of the adsorption of amphipathic CPT-cGMP molecules to the membrane's bilayer component. This conclusion was reinforced by the lack of changes in gramicidin A channel function in the presence of CTP-cGMP. In summary, the activation of the cGMP-dependent pathways reduces nociceptor excitability, in part, by decreasing the activity of voltage-gated TTX-R sodium channels. This pathway may be a target for efforts to produce selective analgesics.


    INTRODUCTION
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
The activation of nociceptors by tissue-damaging chemical, thermal, or mechanical stimuli induces the synthesis and/or release of proinflammatory compounds, such as prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), tumor necrosis factor-{alpha}, and bradykinin, which alter the sensitivity of voltage-gated ion channels in a manner that may result in hyperalgesia or allodynia (Cesare and McNaughton 1996Go; Kidd and Urban 2001Go; Meyer et al. 2000Go; Millan 1999Go; Nicol and Cui 1994Go; Weinreich et al. 1995Go; Woolf and Salter 2000Go). This altered sensitivity is mediated by the activation of intracellular signal transduction pathways, thereby making it important to identify the pathways that may increase or decrease nociceptor sensitivity (Costigan and Woolf 2000Go; Schild and Kunze 1997Go; Szolcsanyi 1993Go; Woolf and Salter 2000Go). Many such studies have focused on the cAMP-protein kinase C (PKC) pathway, the activation of which generally has been shown to increase nociceptor sensitivity to chemical, thermal, or physical stimuli (Aley and Levine 1999Go; Cesare et al. 1999Go; Evans et al. 1999Go; Lopshire and Nicol 1998Go; Piper and Docherty 2000Go).

In this study, we investigated how the modulation of cGMP-dependent pathways affects voltage-gated sodium and potassium channels in nociceptors. In such neurons, the nitric oxide (NO)-dependent and -independent cGMP-PKG pathways have been shown to induce several physiological responses. Most of these studies have focused on the effects of NO-dependent pathway (Lewin and Walters 1999Go; White 1999Go; Yoshimura et al. 2001Go) because release of NO may lead to nociceptor sensitization (Malmberg and Yaksh 1993Go; Meller et al. 2003Go; Moore et al. 1991Go), peripheral injections of NO precursors cause pain (in humans) (Holthusen and Arndt 1994Go), and inhibition of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) reduces hyperalgesia (Baron et al. 2002Go; Tedesco et al. 2002Go). Moreover, NO has been shown to block action potential conduction (Redford et al. 1997Go) and reduce the activity of a variety of voltage-gated sodium channel subtypes (Kim et al. 2000Go; Renganathan et al. 2002Go; Yoshimura et al. 2001Go).

To augment these studies, we investigated the effects of cGMP [actually the membrane-permeant cGMP analogue 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)-3',5' (CPT)-cGMP] per se on nociceptor excitability and selected ion channels present in these neurons. This is important because intrathecal injections of cGMP cause hyperalgesia in mice (Garry and Hargreaves 1994Go) and injection of dibutyryl-cyclic GMP into a rat paw reduces PGE2-induced hyperalgesia (Soares and Duarte 2001Go) and also because activation of guanaylyl cyclase (GC) reduces chemically induced pain (Abacioglu et al. 2000Go). To obtain a deeper understanding of the underlying causes of these effects, we measured in capsaicin-sensitive nociceptive neurons how the addition of CPT-cGMP modulates electrical excitability, evoked action potential morphology, and voltage-gated sodium and potassium channel function. Capsaicin-sensitive neurons are a common type of nociceptor that contains tetrodotoxin-resistant (TTX-R) sodium channels (Kim et al. 1999Go; Liu et al. 2001Go), which contribute to the rising phase of the action potential and are important in the pathological states relating to hyperalgesia and allodynia (Kim et al. 1999Go; Liu et al. 2001Go). Capsaicin-sensitive neurons also possess transient (IA) and delayed (IK) potassium channels, which regulate action potential activity (Liu and Simon 2003Go). Consequently, we examined the extent to which CPT-cGMP altered each of these three types of ion channels. To our knowledge, this is the first time that the effect of a membrane-permeant cGMP analogue has been evaluated on three different channels types in the same neuron type. However, because a membrane-permeable cGMP analogue would be expected to adsorb at the bilayer/solution interface, it could alter indirectly the ion channel function by virtue of altering the mechanical properties (i.e., bending and compressibility moduli) of the bilayer surroundingthe ion channel (Cantor 2002Go; Huang 1986Go; Hwang et al. 2003Go; Lundbaek and Andersen 1994Go, 1999Go; Nielsen et al 1998Go; Partenskii and Jordan 2002Go). For this reason, we also tested the effect of CPT-cGMP on gramicidin A channels in planar lipid bilayers, which permits the monitoring of changes in bilayer material properties (Lundbaek and Andersen 1999Go).

We found that the addition of CPT-cGMP decreased nociceptor excitability. Importantly, CPT-cGMP had no effect on gramicidin A channels, indicating that this molecule has little, if any, bilayer modifying actions, and we conclude that the changes in excitability are due to activation of cGMP-dependent pathways. CPT-cGMP was relatively ineffective in inhibiting IK currents, whereas it markedly inhibited TTX-R type sodium currents that would account, at least in part, for its ability to decrease nociceptor excitability.


    METHODS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
Chemicals

Unless stated otherwise, all chemicals came from Sigma Chemical. Cell culture materials were purchased from GIBCO (Life Technologies, Rockville, MD).

Electrophysiology

Trigeminal ganglion (TG) neurons from adult Sprague-Dawley rats were excised from rats that were anesthetized with pentobarbital sodium (50 mg/kg). After excision, the subjects were killed with 150 mg/kg pentobarbital sodium. Care of animals conformed to standards established by the National Institutes of Health. All animal protocols were approved by the Duke University Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.

Cell culture

TG neurons were cultured using methods described previously (Liu and Simon 1996Go). TG ganglia were excised, dissected, and collected in modified Hank's balanced salt solution (mHBSS). After washing in mHBSS, the ganglia were diced into small pieces and incubated in mHBSS for 30–50 min at 37°C in 0.1% collagenase (Type Xl-S). Individual cells were dissociated by triturating the tissue through a fire-polished glass pipette that was followed with a 10-min incubation at 37°C in 10 µg/ml DNase I (Type lV) in F-12 medium (Life Technologies, Gaithersburg, MD). After washing three times with F-12 media, the cells were cultured in DMEM supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum. The cells were then plated on poly-D-lysine-coated glass coverslips (15 mm diam) and cultured overnight at 37°C. Only neurons without, or with short, processes were used for the electrophysiological measurements. All experiments were done at room temperature (22–24°C)

Patch-clamp recordings

For whole cell voltage-clamp experiments we, used glass pipettes (R-6 borosilicate, Drummond Scientific, Broomall, PA.) with resistances ≤2 M{Omega}. Recordings were obtained using an Axopatch-200B patch-clamp amplifier (Axon Instruments, Foster City, CA), and the output was digitized with a Digidata 1322A converter (Axon Instruments). The intra- and extracellular solutions used to isolate the different ion channels are given in Table 1. When recording currents having a large magnitude, voltage errors may occur. To reduce such errors, we either reduced the concentrations of the major permeable permeant ion (Table 1) and/or further compensated for the series resistance and capacitance (≥90% compensation). For most neurons, the uncompensated series resistance resulted in voltage-clamp errors within 5 mV. If the errors were ≥5 mV, the results were not included in the analysis. Because nociceptors have many of the same properties as neurons with TRPV1 receptors (Baccaglini and Hogan 1983Go; Petruska et al. 2000Go; Tominaga et al. 1998Go), at the end of each experiment, all the neurons were tested for the presence of TRPV1 receptors by applying 10 µM capsaicin. If capsaicin triggered an inward current more than –200 pA from a holding potential of –60 mV, the neuron was defined as being capsaicin sensitive and used in the subsequent analysis.


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TABLE 1. Compositions of intra- and extracellular buffers used in neuron study

 
Throughout the experiments we used 0.1 and 1 mM CPT-cGMP because at these concentrations, this membrane-permeable cGMP analogue has been shown to decrease IA currents (Liu and Simon 2003Go) and affect voltage-gated sodium currents (Renganathan et al. 2002Go).

Internal and external solutions

The concentrations of the various compounds that were used in measuring membrane excitability, and the sodium, and potassium IK and IA currents are given in Table 1.

Current-ramp and -clamp measurements

For the current-ramp measurements the resting potential was adjusted to –80 mV and current ramps, ranging from 0 to –2 nA over 1.5 s, were applied to the neuron before, during (after 3 min incubation) the application of 0.1 and 1 mM CPT-cGMP, and 3 min after washout. Because similar results were obtained for 0.1 and 1.0 mM CPT-cAMP, the effects of these two concentrations were combined. The 3-min intervals were used in all subsequent experiments because they were sufficiently long to reduce the sensitivity of the neuron to evoke action potentials (see Fig. 2). In the same neurons, action potentials (APs) were measured by step depolarization's of 20-ms duration in 0.05-nA steps ranging from 0.1 to –2 nA (Fig. 2). For a control response, we obtained the magnitude of the injected current when the shape of the APs became essentially independent of a larger injected current (Liu et al. 2001Go). The sampling rate was 10 kHz.



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FIG. 2. CPT-cGMP decreases excitability of trigeminal ganglion neurons. A: current-ramp results showing that the numbers of evoked action potentials are reduced in the presence of 1 mM CPT-cGMP. After a 3-min washout, the effect is reversible. B: action potentials generated from the same neuron under these same conditions. The presence of CPT-cGMP produces decrease in amplitude, a reduction in threshold (->) and an increase in duration. Note that the action potential has a characteristic hump on the repolarization phase indicating that it is a nociceptor. Holding potential = –80 mV.

 
The effect of CPT-cGMP on the AP amplitude (from baseline to maximum amplitude), threshold (defined as being the potential where the slope of the rising phase abruptly changed—see arrows in Fig. 2B), and duration (AP width at half-amplitude) were measured with the ClampFit program from Axon Instruments.

Voltage-gated sodium currents

Measurements of TTX-R currents were achieved by preincubating the neurons for ~5 min in 0.2 µM TTX (Kim et al. 1999Go; Tate et al. 1998Go). TTX was present throughout all the subsequent manipulations. The peak current-voltage (Ip-V) relationship was determined using a voltage step protocol in which the voltage was increased in 5-mV step increments from the holding potential of –80 mV to test potentials ≤40 mV. Peak currents were analyzed using pCLAMP 8 and plotted against the applied voltage to obtain the Ip-V relation of sodium current activation. The voltage-dependence of inactivation h({infty}) was determined by measuring the peak maximal sodium currents following the delivery of –100 to 20 mV in 5-mV steps (Liu et al. 2001Go). With this protocol, both persistent and slowly inactivating sodium currents were observed, although the vast majority of the currents were of the slowly inactivating type (Dib-Hajj et al. 1999Go).

IA and IK currents

IA currents were obtained from the total outward current using TEACl to block IK; IK was obtained from the total outward current using 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) to block IA currents (Liu and Simon 2003Go). The IA and IK current-voltage relation was determined using a voltage step protocol in which the cells were depolarized for 250 ms from a holding potential of –80 to test potentials varying between –70 and +60 mV in 10-mV increments. The voltage dependence of channel availability was determined using 250-ms prepulses varying between –120 and 40 mV in 10-mV steps before returning to the holding potential of –80 mV. There was a 4-s interval between each depolarization.

Chamber/solution delivery

The recording chamber containing the neurons had a volume of 350 µl and was continuously perfused at 6 ml/min by the relevant extracellular solution. CPT-cAMP was dissolved in the extracellular buffer immediately before the experiments were performed.

Statistics and curve fitting

The electrophysiological results were analyzed and fitted using pClamp (Axon Instruments) and SigmaPlot (SPSS, Chicago IL) software. G-V and inactivation-voltage parameters were fit to the Boltzmann relation: X = C + {Xmax/[1 + exp (V0.5Vm/k)]}, where V0.5 is the membrane potential (Vm) at which 50% of activation or inactivation was observed, k is the slope of the function, and C is a constant (= 0 in the G-V relation). The inactivation time course was fit to a single-exponential decay (R2 ≥ 0.98) and the values summarized in the text refer to the responses at 50 mV. The results were analyzed for statistical significance using, where appropriate, the paired and unpaired t-test. Statistical significance is defined as P < 0.05. All electrophysiological results are presented as means ± SD.

Measurements with planar bilayers

Planar lipid bilayers were formed at 25 ± 1°C using the pipette method described previously (50) from n-decane solutions (2–3% wt/vol) of dioleoloylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC; Avanti Polar Lipids, Alabaster, AL) across a hole (~1.6 mm diam) in a Teflon partition that separates two aqueous solutions of 1 M NaCl (buffered to pH 7 with 10 mM HEPES and NaOH). D-Ala-gA-, (AGALAVVVWLWLWLW, the D-residues are underlined) was added from ethanolic stock solutions to the electrolyte solution on either side of the bilayer. CPT-cGMP or 8-bromoadenosine-3',5' (8-Br)-cAMP (see Fig. 1) were added to the electrolyte solution, stirred for 5 min, and incubated for 30 min to assure maximal adsorption to the bilayer.



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FIG. 1. Chemical structures of 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)- 3',5'-cyclic guanosinemonophosphate (CPT-cGMP), and 8-bromoadenosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-Br-cGMP).

 
Although CTP-cGMP concentrations >100 µM generally were used in the whole cell experiments, the planar bilayer experiments were limited to lower concentrations because the higher concentrations tended to cause them to become unstable and break. Because planar bilayers are under a net tension (because of the Gibbs–Plateau boarder), this means that they are already closer to their lysis tension. Moreover, unlike plasma membranes that do not contain cholesterol, planar bilayers of DOPC, would be expected to have a lower lysis tension than (cholesterol-containing) membranes (Evans and Needham 1987Go; Olbrich et al. 2000Go), including biological membranes.

Single-channel current transitions were detected using the algorithm described by Andersen (1983)Go implemented in software written in AxoBasic (Axon Instruments). Single-channel current transition amplitude histograms and lifetime histograms were constructed as previously described (Anderson 1983Go; Sawyer et al. 1989Go). The lifetime histograms were transformed into survivor distributions, and the average channel lifetimes ({tau}) were determined by fitting a single exponential distribution: N(t) = N(0) · exp{–t/{tau}}, where N(t) denotes the number of channels with a lifetime longer than time t, and {tau} is the time constant to each histogram (Durkin et al. 1993Go; Sawyer et al. 1989Go). The final results for each experimental condition are based on the means ± SD of at least three independent measurements.


    RESULTS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
CPT-cGMP decreases excitability of capsaicin-sensitive Neurons

In capsaicin-sensitive neurons, the bath application of CPT–cGMP decreases the number of evoked action potentials from 14 ± 11 to 7 ± 7 (n = 15; Fig. 2, A and inset). After a 3-min washout, the number of action potentials recovered to 11 ± 11 (n = 15). Action potentials of long-duration having characteristic humps on the repolarization phase, such as those seen in Fig. 2B, are indicative of capsaicin-sensitive nociceptors (Baccaglini and Hogan 1983Go). Comparison of the morphology of the action potentials under these three conditions revealed that CPT-cAMP produced a 9-mV decrease in the action potential amplitude (from 136 ± 11 to 127 ± 19 mV, n = 15), a 7-mV increase in the threshold potential (see -> in Fig. 2B; from –21 ± 7 to –14 ± 7 mV, n = 15), and a 1-ms increase in the action potential duration (from 2.4 ± 1.1 to 3.4 ± 1.1 ms, n = 15). After a 3-min washout, these parameters were, to various extents, reversible. Because CPT-cGMP decreased nociceptor sensitivity and had multiple effects on the action potential shape, it suggested to us that several types of ion channels were affected. We consequently explored whether voltage-gated sodium and potassium channels in these neurons are affected by CTP-cGMP.

TTX-R Sodium currents

Because capsaicin-sensitive neurons have much larger TTX-R than TTX-sensitive (TTX-S) currents (Kim et al. 1999Go), we investigated the effect of CPT-cGMP on TTX-R currents. We found that CPT-cAMP reduced the amplitude of the TTX-R currents 37%, shifted the conductance-voltage relation in the depolarizing direction by 4 mV, and shifted the inactivation-voltage relation ~3 mV in the hyperpolarizing direction (Table 2). These effects were partially reversible after a 3-min washout (Fig. 3). For the sake of completeness, as well as because the action potential from these neurons has both TTX-R and -sensitive components, we also measured the effect of 1 mM CPT-cGMP on the total sodium current (not shown). Not surprisingly, the results were quite similar to those found for the TTX-R currents. That is, 1 mM CPT-cGMP inhibited the total sodium current 54%, produced a 5-mV depolarizing shift in the G-V relation and produced a 4-mV hyperpolarizing shift in the inactivation–voltage relation (see Table 2).


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TABLE 2. Effect of 1 mM CPT-cGMP on INa-Total, TTX-R, IA and Ik currents

 


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FIG. 3. Modulation of TTX-R currents by CPT-cGMP A: voltage-clamp records of TTX-R currents before, during, and after wash of 1 mM CPT-cAMP. In this neuron, the peak of the maximum current was inhibited 43% by CPT-cAMP. Also shown are the peak current (Ip)-voltage (V) plot, the G–V plot, and the time courses for the control and for the normalized currents in the absence and presence of CPT-cGMP. —, fitted with the following parameters (control: V0.5 = –17.4 mV, k = 4.9; CPT-cGMP: V0.5 = –9.1 mV, k = 8.9). B: current traces to obtain deactivation-voltage data and in the presence and absence of CPT-cGMP. —, fitted with the following parameters (control: V0.5 = –28.5 mV, k = –5.9; CPT-cGMP: V0.5 = –31.5 mV, k = –7.3).

 
Effect of CPT-cGMP on voltage-gated potassium (IA and IK) currents

We also tested the effects of 1 mM CPT-cGMP on IA and IK currents. We reported previously that IA currents were depressed 32% by 1 mM CPT-cGMP (Liu and Simon 2003Go) and Fig. 4A. Here we report that CPT-cGMP did not significantly alter the G-V relation but produced a small, but statistically significant, 3-mV hyperpolarizing shift in the inactivation–voltage curve (see Table 2).



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FIG. 4. Modulation of IA and IK currents by CPT-cGMP A: voltage-clamp records of IA before, during, and after wash of 1 mM CPT-cAMP. In this neuron, the maximum current was inhibited 28%. B: voltage-clamp records of IK before, during, and after wash of 1 mM CPT-cAMP. It is seen that the maximum current was not significantly altered by CPT-cAMP. Also shown are the peak current (Ip)-voltage (V) plot, the G-V plot, and the time courses for the control and for the currents in the presence of CPT-cGMP. —, fit with the Boltzmann parameters (control: V0.5 = –7.4 mV, k = 16.9; CPT-cGMP: V0.5 = –10.1 mV, k = 17.1).

 
In contrast to situation observed for the TTX-R and IA currents, 1 mM CPT-cGMP did not significantly alter the magnitude or the conductance-voltage parameters of IK currents (Fig. 4B and Table 2).

CPT-cGMP does not affect lifetime of conductance of gA channels

As would be expected for membrane-permeant molecules, the "membrane-permeable" cyclic nucleotides, e.g., CPT-cGMP (and also 8-Br-cAMP) are somewhat amphipathic (Fig. 1). This may be cause for concern because of the known ability of amphipathic (and even nonpolar) aromatic molecules like genistein, phloretin, and benzene to alter the lifetime and conductance of gramicidin A channels in lipid bilayers (Lundbaek and Andersen 1994Go, 1999Go)—changes that reflect drug-induced changes in the bilayer material properties. Given that CPT-cGMP (and other membrane-permeable cyclic nucleotides) alters the function of many different membrane proteins, we decided to examine whether CPT-cGMP (and also 8-Br-cAMP) could exert some (or all) of their effects by altering the properties of the host bilayer? We did so by evaluating whether CPT-cGMP and 8-Br-cAMP alter the lifetime and conductance of gramicidin A channels.

Figures 5 and 6 show that addition of 100 µM CPT-cGMP had no effect on gramicidin A channel single-channel current amplitude (i) and average lifetime ({tau}). These experiments were done in 0.1 M KCl (buffered to pH 7) to increase our ability to detect changes in the single-channel currents as would be expected if the negatively charged nucleotides adsorb to the bilayer/solution interface. The current traces (Fig. 5) are from different bilayers because CPT-cGMP, even at 100 µM, causes bilayers to become unstable and break. For this reason, we cannot evaluate whether CPT-cGMP increases the channel appearance rate. (Given this instability, most experimental results were obtained in 1.0 M NaCl, buffered to pH 7, as this increases bilayer stability but not to the point where we can evaluate whether addition of the nucleotides alters the channel appearance rate.) The histograms (Fig. 5) show single-channel current transition amplitude and lifetime distributions as well as single-exponential fits to the lifetime distributions. Table 3 summarizes the results obtained with both CPT-cGMP and 8-Br-cAMP in 0.1 M KCl and 1.0 M NaCl. We conclude that these two compounds have little, if any, effect on gramicidin channel function. The lack of effect of these compounds on gramicidin A channel function indicates that the effects of CTP-cGMP are unlikely to arise from changes in bilayer elastic properties, although the decrease in bilayer stability (decrease in lysis tension) certainly indicates that the cyclic nucleotides (or some contaminant) interacts with the bilayer. These results are somewhat surprising considering that both these compounds permeate cell membranes.



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FIG. 5. Effects of CPT-cGMP on D-Ala-gA channel function. Single-channel current traces for D-Ala-gA with no addition (top) and in the presence of 100 µM CPT-cGMP (bottom). There are no obvious changes in channel function (appearance rate, lifetime, and single-channel current transitions). Dioleoloylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC), 0.1 M KCl, 10 mM HEPES pH 7.0. ±100 mV, 500 Hz.

 


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FIG. 6. Effects of CPT-cGMP on D-Ala-gA channel function. Left: current transition amplitude histograms obtained with no addition (top) or in the presence of 100 µM CPT-cGMP. The peaks are at i = 0.88 ± 0.07 and 0.91 ± 0.12 pA, respectively, indicating no significant change. Right: normalized single-channel lifetime distributions plotted as survivor histograms. The results are fitted with single-exponential distributions N(t)/N(0) = exp{–t /{tau}}. Under control conditions, {tau} = 62 ± 7 ms; in the presence of 100 µM CPT-cGMP, {tau} = 71 ± 6 ms. In each case the results, and SDs are based on 3 independent experiments. DOPC, 0.1 M KCl, 10 mM HEPES pH 7.0, ±200 mV, 500 Hz.

 

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TABLE 3. Effect of CPT-cGMP and 8-Br-cAMP on gramicidin channel function

 

    DISCUSSION
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
The cGMP-PKG pathway has been found to be important in the modulation of ion channels involved in neuronal and nociceptor excitability (Abacioglu et al. 2000Go; Garry and Hargreaves 1994Go; Lewin and Walters 1999Go; Meller et al. 2003Go; Moore et al. 1993Go; Soares and Duarte 2001Go). We have explored the consequences of modulating this pathway on three types of ion channels found in nociceptors and found that CPT-cGMP alters TTX-R sodium currents and the transient IA potassium currents but has no effect on the delayed rectifier IK currents. This differential regulation suggests that the effect is specific due to the cGMP-PKG pathway. By investigating the effect on gramicidin A channels, we could conclude that the changes in TTX-R and IA channel function do not arise from "nonspecific" changes in bilayer elasticity, which could alter the function of the imbedded channels. But we also note that the decreased bilayer stability demonstrates that this membrane-permeable, and thus presumably amphiphilic, molecule can bind to the bilayer.

Our primary finding was that increases in cGMP decrease the sensitivity of capsaicin-sensitive nociceptive neurons to evoke action potentials (Fig. 2). This result should be of interest to researchers seeking to identify cGMP-dependent pathways and their downstream targets that will decrease nociceptor activity. Although we found that IA currents also are inhibited by cGMP, which should increase nociceptor excitability, the inhibition of the TTX-R channels appears to be the more important factor in reducing nociceptor excitability.

Blocking of action potentials by cGMP

We have found that the addition of CTP-cGMP decreases nociceptor excitability (Fig. 2). It was previously found that NO could block action potentials in demyelinated axons (Redford et al. 1997Go). It follows that the decrease in nociceptor excitability can arise from both NO-dependent and -independent pathways, most likely by converging on the more downstream pathways that involve guanylyl cyclase or PKG (White 1999Go).

One common pathway that could explain why both NO-dependent and -independent pathways decrease neuronal sensitivity is that they both inhibit voltage-gated sodium channels. Renganathan et al. (2002)Go have shown that the activation of NO-dependent pathways inhibits both TTX-S and -R currents. However, in that study, it also was reported that addition of 2 mM of 8-bromo-cGMP produced a small increase in these sodium currents. In contrast, we have shown that another cell permeable analogue, 1 mM CPT-cGMP, significantly decreased the TTX-R sodium currents (Fig. 3). This discrepancy can perhaps be rationalized by differences in the protocols. Renganathan et al. (2002)Go used cesium fluoride (CsF) in their intracellular solution, no doubt because such solutions give better sealing and stability. However, CsF is well known to increase basal levels of cGMP, which makes it difficult to compare the effects of adding membrane-permeable cGMP analogues in our experiments with effects measured using CsF.

In summary, we have shown that in the presence of CPT-cAMP, the sensitivity of voltage-gated sodium channels in capsaicin-sensitive nociceptors is depressed.

Channel selectivity of response to cGMP

One aspect of this study was to investigate the effects of the addition of CPT-cGMP on three different channel types in the same type of neuron. It was found that increasing the CPT-cGMP concentration was generally inhibitory with the order of inhibition of the peak currents being TTX-R ~ IA >> IK ~ 0%. Although we have not investigated the origin of the inhibition, at least for sodium channels, the inhibition arises, in part, from the shifts the voltage dependence of the activation and inactivation parameters (Table 2). These changes could arise because CPT-cGMP binds directly with the channels or, more likely, alters their state of phosphorylation. Given that CPT-cGMP is membrane permeable, CPT-cGMP is likely to be amphipathic and therefore adsorb to the bilayer/solution interface, which could produce a change in the bilayer mechanical properties that in turn alter channel behavior (Cantor 2002Go; Lundbaek and Andersen 1994Go, 1999Go). This is unlikely to be major contributing mechanism, however, because 100 µM CPT-cGMP did not alter the conductance of gramicidin A channels, indicating that it does not adsorb to any significant extent in the interfacial region of the bilayer. Nor does CPT-cGMP (or 8-Br-cAMP) alter the single-channel lifetimes (Fig. 6 and Table 3), again indicating that these compounds have little, if any, effects on bilayer properties. Consistent with this conclusion, the effect of CPT-cGMP is specific, in the sense that the IK currents were unaffected by CPT-cGMP (Fig. 4)—again suggesting that the effects on IA and sodium channels are not due to nonspecific membrane alteration.

Although not a focus of the present study, the results raise questions concerning the mechanism by which membrane-permeant cyclic nucleotides cross cell membranes. If these charged compounds to not adsorb significantly to the membrane/solution interface, do they cross the membrane by a simple solubility-diffusion mechanism?

Cyclic AMP and cyclic GMP have opposite effects on nociceptor excitability

There have been many studies showing that the cAMP-PKA pathway generally sensitizes nociceptors (Aley and Levine 1999Go; Cesare et al. 1999Go; Evans et al. 1999Go; Kress et al. 1996Go; Lopshire and Nicol 1998Go; Piper and Docherty 2000Go). What we have shown in this study is that the cGMP-PKG pathway has a general inhibitory effect on nociceptor excitability. That is, in nociceptors these two pathways appear be antagonistic. In this regard, some receptors, such as the TRPV1 receptor, have been shown to activate both cAMP (Liu et al 2001Go)- and cGMP (Dymshitz and Vasko 1994Go; Wood et al. 1989Go)-mediated pathways, meaning the effect that its activation has on a particular channel type will be reflective of both pathways (Liu and Simon 2003Go; Liu et al. 2001Go; Morris and Malbon 1999Go).

In summary, we found that the activation of cGMP pathways will decrease nociceptor excitability thereby making it more difficult to initiate and propagate action potentials. This decrease occurs primarily as a consequence of the TTX-R currents. Because TTX-R currents are found in nociceptors and have been shown to be involved in allodynia, hyperalgesia and various disease states (Baker and Wood 2001Go; Waxman 1999Go), the ability to understand how they may be decreased will be relevant for pain management.


    GRANTS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
This work was supported by National Institute of General Medical Sciences Grants GM-63577 to L. Liu and GM-21342 to O. S. Andersen and by the Philip Morris External Research Program to S. A. Simon.


    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 GRANTS
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 REFERENCES
 
We thank S. Yu for technical assistance, S. Halkoitis for comments, and Dr. Roger E. Koeppe II for a gift of [Ala1]gA.


    FOOTNOTES
 
The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. The article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.

Address for reprint requests and other correspondence: L. Liu, 229 Bryan Research Bldg., Research Drive, Durham, NC 27710 (E-mail:lieju{at}neuro.duke.edu).


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