Deletion of vanilloid receptor 1_expressing primary afferent neurons for pain control
J. Clin. Invest. Laszlo Karai, et al. 113:1344 doi:10.1172/JCI20449 [Go to this article.]

Figure 2
Selective loss of TRPV1-IR sensory ganglion neurons after RTX (200 ng) microinjection. (A) Immunostaining for TRPV1 shows extensive loss of IR neuronal perikarya after RTX injection compared with contralateral noninjected TG (B). (C_F) Double labeling shows that large myelinated N52⁺ sensory neurons (brown) are retained on the RTX-injected side, whereas TRPV1⁺ neurons (purple) are deleted (C). On the contralateral, noninjected side, both N52 and TRPV1 neurons are intact (D). Quantification shows no significant difference in the number of N52-IR perikarya after RTX, whereas an 80% reduction in TRPV1⁺ neurons occurs (E and F). Bars in graph represent the average neuron counts in three sections of TG from three to five different rats assessed between 1 and 3 days after injection (*P < 0.01). (G) RT-PCR shows reduction of mRNA_TRPV1 in two different rats. M_r, markers; NO, no primer; SC, spinal cord; T, RTX treated; C, contralateral TG. Bars: 0.5 mm (A and B) and 50 ∝m (C and D).