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Urinary Bladder Distention Evoked Visceromotor Responses as a Model for Bladder Pain in Mice
Published on: April 27, 2014
Acute bladder inflammation differentially affects rat spinal visceral nociceptive neurons
T J Ness1, P J Castroman, A Randich
1Department of Anesthesiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1530 Third Avenue South, BMR2-270, Birmingham, AL 35294-0006, USA. tjness@uab.edu
Neuroscience Letters
|October 14, 2009
Summary
Bladder inflammation alters spinal dorsal horn neuron activity. Type II neurons show increased responses to urinary bladder distension (UBD), while Type I neurons show decreased responses, impacting visceral pain signaling.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pain Research
- Visceral Sensation
Background:
- Inflammation is a key factor in visceral pain.
- Spinal dorsal horn neurons process sensory information from the bladder.
- Neuronal responses to bladder distension (UBD) are crucial for pain perception.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how induced bladder inflammation affects spinal dorsal horn neuronal activity.
- To determine if different neuronal subtypes respond differently to inflammation and UBD.
- To explore the role of these changes in visceral nociception.
Main Methods:
- Extracellular single-unit recordings were performed on spinalized female rats.
- Neurons were classified as Type I (inhibited by heterotopic noxious conditioning stimuli - HNCS) or Type II (not inhibited by HNCS).
- Zymosan-induced bladder inflammation was created, and neuronal activity was recorded before and after inflammation.
Main Results:
- Intravesical zymosan induced inflammation, altering neuronal activity.
- Type II neurons exhibited increased spontaneous and UBD-evoked activity post-inflammation.
- Type I neurons showed no change or decreased activity, depending on the experimental timing.
- Control groups (saline or subcutaneous zymosan) showed no significant changes.
Conclusions:
- Bladder inflammation differentially modulates subpopulations of spinal dorsal horn neurons.
- These changes in neuronal activity alter spinal sensory transmission.
- This altered transmission may underlie the generation of visceral pain.
