Protein IRF8 causes neuropathic pain

Neuropathic pain is chronic pain caused by damage to nerves due to cancer and diabetes. The patient is very painful, and even touching the body while wearing clothes is very painful. A team led by Japan's Kyushu University’s Associate Professor Tsuda Yasaki found that the protein that causes this pain is IRF8.

Previous studies have shown that the excessive activation of microglial cells in the brain and spinal cord following nerve injury produces substances that excite nerves and cause pain. However, the mechanism of why microglial cells are active remains unclear.

Tsuda et al. found in experiments using mice that the IRF8 protein is only present in the small glial mesenchyme cells. After nerve injury, the protein in the microglia increases and becomes active, playing a "switching" role in activating microglial cells.

There are about 20 million neuropathic pain patients in the world. Commonly used analgesics such as morphine analgesia, but its effect is limited and can cause people to become addicted. Tsuda Tian pointed out: "By deterring the function of the IRF8 protein, it is possible to ease chronic pain." The research team is prepared to continue the study in the future to strive for the discovery of existing drugs to suppress the function of IRF8 protein.