PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Iryna A. Khasabova
AU  - Sergey Khasabov
AU  - Justin Paz
AU  - Catherine Harding-Rose
AU  - Donald A. Simone
AU  - Virginia S. Seybold
TI  - Cannabinoid Type-1 Receptor Reduces Pain and Neurotoxicity Produced by Chemotherapy
AID  - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0403-12.2012
DP  - 2012 May 16
TA  - The Journal of Neuroscience
PG  - 7091--7101
VI  - 32
IP  - 20
4099  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/32/20/7091.short
4100  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/32/20/7091.full
SO  - J. Neurosci.2012 May 16; 32
AB  - Painful peripheral neuropathy is a dose-limiting complication of chemotherapy. Cisplatin produces a cumulative toxic effect on peripheral nerves, and 30–40% of cancer patients receiving this agent experience pain. By modeling cisplatin-induced hyperalgesia in mice with daily injections of cisplatin (1 mg/kg, i.p.) for 7 d, we investigated the anti-hyperalgesic effects of anandamide (AEA) and cyclohexylcarbamic acid 3′-carbamoyl-biphenyl-3-yl ester (URB597), an inhibitor of AEA hydrolysis. Cisplatin-induced mechanical and heat hyperalgesia were accompanied by a decrease in the level of AEA in plantar paw skin. No changes in motor activity were observed after seven injections of cisplatin. Intraplantar injection of AEA (10 μg/10 μl) or URB597 (9 μg/10 μl) transiently attenuated hyperalgesia through activation of peripheral CB1 receptors. Co-injections of URB597 (0.3 mg/kg daily, i.p.) with cisplatin decreased and delayed the development of mechanical and heat hyperalgesia. The effect of URB597 was mediated by CB1 receptors since AM281 (0.33 mg/kg daily, i.p.) blocked the effect of URB597. Co-injection of URB597 also normalized the cisplatin-induced decrease in conduction velocity of Aα/Aβ-fibers and reduced the increase of ATF-3 and TRPV1 immunoreactivity in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. Since DRGs are a primary site of toxicity by cisplatin, effects of cisplatin were studied on cultured DRG neurons. Incubation of DRG neurons with cisplatin (4 μg/ml) for 24 h decreased the total length of neurites. URB597 (100 nm) attenuated these changes through activation of CB1 receptors. Collectively, these results suggest that pharmacological facilitation of AEA signaling is a promising strategy for attenuating cisplatin-associated sensory neuropathy.