Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 activity regulates pain signaling
- Tej K. Pareek*,
- Jason Keller†,
- Sashi Kesavapany‡,
- Harish C. Pant‡,
- Michael J. Iadarola†,
- Roscoe O. Brady§,¶, and
- Ashok B. Kulkarni*,¶
- *Functional Genomics Section, Craniofacial Developmental Biology and Regeneration Branch, and †Pain and Neurosensory Mechanisms Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892; and ‡Cytoskeletal Protein Regulation Section, Laboratory of Neurochemistry, and §Developmental and Metabolic Neurology Branch, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892
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Contributed by Roscoe O. Brady, December 2, 2005
Abstract
Several molecules and cellular pathways have been implicated in nociceptive signaling, but their precise molecular mechanisms have not been clearly defined. Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) is a proline-directed serine/threonine kinase implicated in the development and disease of the mammalian nervous system. The precise role of this kinase in sensory pathways has not been well characterized. Here we report a molecular role for Cdk5 in nociception. We identified the expression of Cdk5 and its activator p35 in nociceptive neurons, which is modulated during a peripheral inflammatory response. Increased calpain activity in sensory neurons after inflammation resulted in the cleavage of p35 to p25, which forms a more stable complex with Cdk5 and, consequently, leads to elevation of Cdk5 activity. p35 knockout mice (p35–/–), which exhibit significantly decreased Cdk5 activity, showed delayed responses to painful thermal stimulation compared with WT controls. In contrast, mice overexpressing p35, which exhibit elevated levels of Cdk5 activity, were more sensitive to painful thermal stimuli than were controls. In conclusion, our data demonstrate a role for Cdk5/p35 activity in primary afferent nociceptive signaling, suggesting that Cdk5/p35 may be a target for the development of analgesic drugs.
Footnotes
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↵ ¶ To whom correspondence may be addressed. E-mail: rb57v{at}nih.gov or akulkarn{at}mail.nih.gov.
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Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared
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Abbreviations: Cdk5, cyclin-dependent kinase 5; Tgp35 mice, transgenic mice overexpressing p35; DRG, dorsal root ganglia; TG, trigeminal ganglia; SC, spinal cord; ERK, extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase; HT, Hargreaves test; TW, tail withdrawal test.
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Freely available online through the PNAS open access option.
