Abstract
Obesity is associated with many complications, including type 2 diabetes and painful neuropathy. There is no cure or prevention for obesity-induced pain, and the neurobiology underlying the onset of the disease is still obscure. In this study, we observe that western diet (WD)-fed mice developed early allodynia with an increase of ER stress markers in the sensory neurons of the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Using cell-specific approaches, we demonstrate that neuronal liver X receptor (LXR) activation delays ER stress and allodynia in WD-fed mice. Our findings suggest that lipid-binding nuclear receptors expressed in the sensory neurons of the DRG play a role in the onset of obesity-induced hypersensitivity. The LXR and lipid-sensor pathways represent a research avenue to identify targets to prevent debilitating complications affecting the peripheral nerve system in obesity. The mechanism underlying obesity-induced pain is explored by Gavini et al. using cell-specific models. Their analysis reveals that in sensory neurons of the dorsal root ganglia, LXR activation delays western diet-induced ER stress and allodynia. These findings suggest that LXRs in sensory neurons are involved in nociception induced by western diet nutrition.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 271-277.e4 |
Journal | Cell Reports |
Volume | 25 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 9 2018 |
Keywords
- DRG
- ER stress
- diet-induced obesity
- liver X receptors
- neuropathy
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology