Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 22, 2026

A Procedure for Implanting a Spinal Chamber for Longitudinal In Vivo Imaging of the Mouse Spinal Cord
11:20

A Procedure for Implanting a Spinal Chamber for Longitudinal In Vivo Imaging of the Mouse Spinal Cord

Published on: December 3, 2014

14.8K

(-)-menthol increases excitatory transmission by activating both TRPM8 and TRPA1 channels in mouse spinal lamina II

Yuhui Luo1, Wuping Sun1, Xiaojin Feng2

  • 1Department of Pain Medicine and Shenzhen Municipal Key Laboratory for Pain Medicine, Shenzhen Nanshan People's Hospital and the 6th Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Health Science Center, Shenzhen, 518060, China.

Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
|July 3, 2019
PubMed

Insights

(-)-menthol enhances excitatory synaptic transmission in the spinal cord. This effect involves activating transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8) and transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) channels in lamina II neurons.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Pharmacology
  • Pain Research

Background:

  • (-)-menthol is widely used and known for peripheral analgesic effects mediated by TRPM8.
  • Central mechanisms of (-)-menthol's action, particularly in pain modulation, are not fully understood.
  • Spinal lamina II is crucial for processing nociceptive signals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the central effects of (-)-menthol on excitatory synaptic transmission.
  • To elucidate the specific ion channels involved in (-)-menthol's action in the spinal cord.

Main Methods:

  • Patch-clamp recordings were used to measure synaptic activity in mice spinal cord lamina II.
  • Experiments involved dose-response analysis, genetic knockout, and pharmacological inhibition of TRPM8 and TRPA1 channels.

Main Results:

  • (-)-menthol dose-dependently increased the frequency of miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs).
  • TRPM8 knockout or inhibition did not completely block the effect.
  • TRPA1 antagonism partially impaired the effect, while combined TRPM8 and TRPA1 antagonism abolished it.

Conclusions:

  • (-)-menthol enhances excitatory synaptic transmission in the spinal lamina II.
  • This action is mediated by the activation of both TRPM8 and TRPA1 channels.
  • These findings reveal a novel central mechanism for (-)-menthol's neuromodulatory effects.
Keywords:
(−)-mentholSpinal cordSynaptic transmissionTRP channels

More Related Videos

A Neurosphere Assay to Evaluate Endogenous Neural Stem Cell Activation in a Mouse Model of Minimal Spinal Cord Injury09:08

A Neurosphere Assay to Evaluate Endogenous Neural Stem Cell Activation in a Mouse Model of Minimal Spinal Cord Injury

Published on: September 13, 2018

10.3K
Activity-based Training on a Treadmill with Spinal Cord Injured Wistar Rats06:40

Activity-based Training on a Treadmill with Spinal Cord Injured Wistar Rats

Published on: January 16, 2019

8.5K

Related Concept Videos

Antiepileptic Drugs: Potassium Channel Activators01:20

Antiepileptic Drugs: Potassium Channel Activators

Ezocgabine or retigabine, an antiepileptic drug of remarkable efficacy, has revolutionized the management of seizures. It is a potassium channel activator, explicitly targeting the family of Q subtype potassium channels. It enhances the transmembrane potassium currents, regulating neuronal excitability. This action stabilizes the resting membrane potential, a pivotal factor in mitigating the hyperexcitability that characterizes epilepsy.
Ezogabine has gained approval as an adjunctive treatment...
644
Excitatory and Inhibitory Effects of Neurotransmitters01:29

Excitatory and Inhibitory Effects of Neurotransmitters

When an action potential reaches the presynaptic axon terminal, it releases neurotransmitters from the neuron into the synaptic cleft at a chemical synapse. The released neurotransmitter can be excitatory or inhibitory. The critical criteria commonly used to determine whether a molecule is a neurotransmitter at a chemical synapse are the molecule's presence in the presynaptic neuron. Second, its release is in response to strong presynaptic depolarization. And lastly, the presence of...
12.7K
Ion Channels01:19

Ion Channels

The movement of ions like sodium, potassium, and calcium into and out of the cell is essential to maintain the electrochemical gradient in living cells. The ion channels—a class of membrane transport proteins—help maintain this ionic gradient for the smooth functioning of physiological activities such as maintaining cell size and volume, conducting nerve impulses, and gas and nutrient exchange.
Ion channels are specialized integral membrane proteins on the plasma membrane that allow...
91.2K
Laminins are the Adhesive Proteins of Basal Lamina00:55

Laminins are the Adhesive Proteins of Basal Lamina

Laminins are heterotrimeric proteins with high molecular mass found in the extracellular matrix. Each laminin molecule is composed of three chains, viz. alpha, beta, and gamma, coded by five, four, and three paralogous genes, respectively. Laminins are categories based on the compositions of the three chains.
In humans, the five forms of alpha chains are LAMA 1, LAMA 2, LAMA 3, LAMA 4, and LAMA 5. The four forms of beta chains are LAMB 1, LAMB 2, LAMB 3, and LAMB 4. The three forms of gamma...
3.1K
Basal Lamina are the Specialized Form of ECM01:03

Basal Lamina are the Specialized Form of ECM

The basal lamina is a thin extracellular layer that lies underneath the cells and separates them from other tissues. The three layers of the basal lamina are lamina lucida, lamina densa and lamina reticularis. The basal lamina, a mixture of glycoproteins and collagen, provides an attachment site for the epithelium, separating it from underlying connective tissue. The framework of basal lamina has other essential proteins such as laminins mesh, perlecan, entactin, and type IV collagen.
Proteins...
3.7K
Type IV Collagen of Basal Lamina01:05

Type IV Collagen of Basal Lamina

Type IV collagen is a 400 nm long, network-forming collagen that acts as a barrier between the epithelial and endothelial cells. Type IV collagen  forms the backbone of the basement membrane by scaffolding with laminin, entactin, proteoglycans, and fibronectin. Apart from rendering structural support to the basement membrane, it also helps entail signaling potentials necessary for both pathological and physiological functions.
A type IV collagen molecule has six alpha chains which can...
3.0K