antiquity
11-26-2002, 08:29 AM
Enkephalin-expressing vector cuts bone cancer pain in mice
David Douglas
Reuters Health
Posting Date: November 25, 2002
Last Updated: 2002-11-25 13:35:06 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Subcutaneous inoculation of a herpes simplex vector expressing proenkephalin attenuates nociception in a murine model of bone cancer pain, researchers report in the November issue of the Annals of Neurology
Senior investigator Dr. David J. Fink told Reuters Health that in previous work he and his colleagues had successfully used this technique in animal models of inflammatory pain.
"The advantage of this gene transfer approach to chronic pain," he pointed out "is that it is local, provides continuous pain relief, enhances the effect of morphine, while avoiding the side effects of systemic morphine treatment."
Dr. Fink of the University of Pittsburgh and VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, and colleagues gave mice, which had had osteolytic sarcoma cells implanted in the right femur, a subcutaneous inoculation of a replication-defective herpes simplex vector expressing human proenkephalin or a control vector.
Animals were scored for pain-related behavior, such as limping and biting and licking the affected limb. Mice given the proenkephalin vector showed significantly lower pain scores at 2 and 3 weeks after tumor injection than did controls.
Furthermore, within minutes, intrathecal injection of the opioid blocker naltrexone resulted in the return of pain-related behavior in the protected animals.
The findings, continued Dr. Fink, "demonstrate that vector-mediated gene transfer is also effective in cancer pain; this represents a type of pain that is appropriate for the first human trial, which we proposed to the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee at the NIH in June, and are now preparing to submit to the FDA."
Ann Neurol 2002;52:662-665.
http://www.oncolink.com/resources/article.cfm?c=3&s=8&ss=23&Year=2002&Month=11&id=9091
David Douglas
Reuters Health
Posting Date: November 25, 2002
Last Updated: 2002-11-25 13:35:06 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Subcutaneous inoculation of a herpes simplex vector expressing proenkephalin attenuates nociception in a murine model of bone cancer pain, researchers report in the November issue of the Annals of Neurology
Senior investigator Dr. David J. Fink told Reuters Health that in previous work he and his colleagues had successfully used this technique in animal models of inflammatory pain.
"The advantage of this gene transfer approach to chronic pain," he pointed out "is that it is local, provides continuous pain relief, enhances the effect of morphine, while avoiding the side effects of systemic morphine treatment."
Dr. Fink of the University of Pittsburgh and VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, and colleagues gave mice, which had had osteolytic sarcoma cells implanted in the right femur, a subcutaneous inoculation of a replication-defective herpes simplex vector expressing human proenkephalin or a control vector.
Animals were scored for pain-related behavior, such as limping and biting and licking the affected limb. Mice given the proenkephalin vector showed significantly lower pain scores at 2 and 3 weeks after tumor injection than did controls.
Furthermore, within minutes, intrathecal injection of the opioid blocker naltrexone resulted in the return of pain-related behavior in the protected animals.
The findings, continued Dr. Fink, "demonstrate that vector-mediated gene transfer is also effective in cancer pain; this represents a type of pain that is appropriate for the first human trial, which we proposed to the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee at the NIH in June, and are now preparing to submit to the FDA."
Ann Neurol 2002;52:662-665.
http://www.oncolink.com/resources/article.cfm?c=3&s=8&ss=23&Year=2002&Month=11&id=9091