Neuropathic pain:Anti-allodynic efficacy of botulinum neurotoxin A in mouse mode

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Neuroscience. 2007 Mar 2;145(1):1-4.

Anti-allodynic efficacy of botulinum neurotoxin A in a model of

neuropathic pain.

Luvisetto S, Marinelli S, Cobianchi S, Pavone F.

CNR Institute of Neuroscience, Psychobiology and Psychopharmacology,

Via del Fosso di Fiorano 64, I-00143 Roma, Italy.

Neuropathic pain is typified by injuries to the peripheral and

central nervous system and derives from such causes as cancer,

diabetes, multiple sclerosis, post-herpetic neuralgia, physical

trauma or surgery, and many others. Patients suffering neuropathic

pain do not respond to conventional treatment with non-steroidal

anti-inflammatory drugs and show a reduced sensitivity to opiates

often associated with serious side effects.

Recently, it has been demonstrated that botulinum neurotoxin

serotype-A (BoNT/A) is able to induce analgesia in inflammatory pain

conditions. The goal of this research was to test if BoNT/A was able

to relieve also neuropathic pain symptoms.

By using chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve, a mouse

model of neuropathic pain, we observed that peripheral

administration of BoNT/A strongly reduced the mechanical allodynia

associated with this neuropathy. Remarkably, a single non-toxic dose

of BoNT/A was sufficient to induce anti-allodynic effects, which

lasted for at least 3 weeks.

This result is particularly relevant since neuropathic pain is

poorly treated by current drug therapies. This communication

enlarges our knowledge on potentially new medical uses of BoNT/A in

efforts to ameliorate human health conditions, with very important

implications in the development of new pharmacotherapeutic

approaches against neuropathic pain.