While neuroimmune interactions are increasingly recognized as important in nociceptive
processing, the nature and functional significance of these interactions is not well defined.
There are multiple reports that the activation of spinal microglia is a critical event in the
generation of neuropathic pain behaviors but the mediators of this activation remain
disputed. Here we show that the chemokine CCL2, produced by both damaged and
undamaged primary sensory neurons in neuropathic pain states in rats, is released in an …