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Biotech / Medical : Neurogen (NRGN) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Miljenko Zuanic who wrote (393)	3/26/2005 1:04:11 PM
From: tuck	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 523

[Immunological role of neuronal receptor VR1 expressed on DCs] >>Published online before print March 25, 2005 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 10.1073/pnas.0407780102 OPEN ACCESS ARTICLE Immunology Immunological role of neuronal receptor vanilloid receptor 1 expressed on dendritic cells ( capsaicin \| heat receptor \| immunity ) Sreyashi Basu and Pramod Srivastava * Center for Immunotherapy of Cancer and Infectious Diseases, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, MC1601, Farmington, CT 06030-1601 Edited by N. Avrion Mitchison, University College London, London, United Kingdom, and approved February 3, 2005 (received for review October 19, 2004) Capsaicin (CP), the pungent component of chili pepper, acts on sensory neurons to convey the sensation of pain. The CP receptor, vanilloid receptor 1 (VR1), has been shown to be highly expressed by nociceptive neurons in dorsal root and trigeminal ganglia. We demonstrate here that the dendritic cell (DC), a key cell type of the vertebrate immune system, expresses VR1. Engagement of VR1 on immature DCs such as by treatment with CP leads to maturation of DCs as measured by up-regulation of antigen-presenting and costimulatory molecules. This effect is present in DCs of VR1+/+ but not VR1-/- mice. In VR1+/+ mice, this effect is inhibited by the VR1 antagonist capsazepine. Further, intradermal administration of CP leads to migration of DCs to the draining lymph nodes in VR1+/+ but not VR1-/- mice. These data demonstrate a powerful influence of a neuroactive ligand on a central aspect of immune function and a commonality of mechanistic pathways between neural and immune functions.<< Full text freebie: pnas.org Not sure, but wondering if this is a bad thing. Immunological side effects might be a problem? OTOH, might be a good thing if properly exploited. It's just that NRGN and Merck weren't aiming for immunological effects. Cheers, Tuck