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The role of microglia in chronic pain and depression: innocent bystander or culprit?

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Abstract

Clinical evidence shows that chronic pain and depression often accompany each other, but the underlying pathogenesis of comorbid chronic pain and depression remains mostly undetermined. Biotechnology is gradually revealing the phenotype and function of microglia, with great progress regarding microglia’s role in neurodegeneration, depression, chronic pain, and other conditions. This article summarizes the role of microglia in chronic pain, depression, and comorbidities, which is conducive to finding new targets to treat chronic pain and depression.

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Abbreviations

ASK1:

apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1

ATP:

adenosine triphosphate

BDNF:

brain-derived neurotrophic factor

CCL2:

C-C motif ligand 2

CCR2:

C-C motif ligand 2 receptor

CSF-1:

colony-stimulating factor 1

HMGB1:

high mobility group box 1

HPA:

hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal

IL:

interleukin

iNOS:

inducible nitric oxide synthase

JNK:

Jun N-terminal kinase

LPS:

lipopolysaccharide

LTP:

long-term potentiation

MAPK:

mitogen-activated protein kinases

NF-κB:

nuclear factor kappa B

NLRP3:

nod-like receptor protein 3

NMDA:

N-methyl-d-aspartate

NO:

nitric oxide

p-CREB:

phosphorylated cAMP response element-binding protein

PI3K:

phosphoinositide 3-kinase

ROS:

reactive oxygen species

TNF-α:

tumor necrosis factor-α

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  1. Dr. Nan Yin and Dr. Enshi Yan contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anesthesiology, Affiliated Stomatological Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210029, China

    Nan Yin & Enshi Yan

  2. Department of Anesthesiology, The Second Affiliated Changzhou People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, 213000, China

    Wenbin Duan, Changyuan Mao, Qin Fei & Yimin Hu

  3. Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210029, China

    Chun Yang

  4. Department of Anesthesiology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China

    Xiaolin Xu

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  1. Nan Yin
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  2. Enshi Yan
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  3. Wenbin Duan
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  4. Changyuan Mao
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Correspondence to Yimin Hu or Xiaolin Xu.

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Yin, N., Yan, E., Duan, W. et al. The role of microglia in chronic pain and depression: innocent bystander or culprit?. Psychopharmacology 238, 949–958 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-021-05780-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-021-05780-4

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