Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 24, 2026

Ex Vivo Release of Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide from the Trigeminovascular System in Rodents
Published on: May 16, 2022
The KATP channel in migraine pathophysiology: a novel therapeutic target for migraine
Mohammad Al-Mahdi Al-Karagholi1, Jakob Møller Hansen1, Johanne Severinsen1
1Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Nordre Ringvej 57, DK-2600, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Background:
To review the distribution and function of KATP channels, describe the use of KATP channels openers in clinical trials and make the case that these channels may play a role in headache and migraine.
Discussion:
KATP channels are widely present in the trigeminovascular system and play an important role in the regulation of tone in cerebral and meningeal arteries. Clinical trials using synthetic KATP channel openers report headache as a prevalent-side effect in non-migraine sufferers, indicating that KATP channel opening may cause headache, possibly due to vascular mechanisms. Whether KATP channel openers can provoke migraine in migraine sufferers is not known.
Conclusion:
We suggest that KATP channels may play an important role in migraine pathogenesis and could be a potential novel therapeutic anti-migraine target.
Related Concept Videos
Ligand-Gated Ion Channel Receptor: Gating Mechanism
Non-gated Ion Channels
Compared to the gated ion channels, the non-gated channels, also known as leakage or passive channels, have no gating mechanism....
Ligand-gated Ion Channels
Three Subfamilies of Ligand-gated Ion Channels
Ligand-gated ion channels fall into three subfamilies. The 'Cys-loop' includes the nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glycine, and 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors. The second one is the 'Pore-loop' channels that...
Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: Neurokinin-1 Receptor Antagonists
Voltage-gated Ion Channels
Generally, all voltage-gated ion channels have a 'voltage-sensing domain' that spans the lipid bilayer. The charged residues in the sensor move in response to the membrane potential changes that open the channel allowing ions movement. There are several types of...
Ion Channels
Ion channels are specialized integral membrane proteins on the plasma membrane that allow...

