TY - JOUR T1 - Increased Presynaptic and Postsynaptic α<sub>2</sub>-Adrenoceptor Activity in the Spinal Dorsal Horn in Painful Diabetic Neuropathy JF - Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics JO - J Pharmacol Exp Ther SP - 285 LP - 292 DO - 10.1124/jpet.110.176586 VL - 337 IS - 1 AU - Shao-Rui Chen AU - Hong Chen AU - Wei-Xiu Yuan AU - Hui-Lin Pan Y1 - 2011/04/01 UR - http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/337/1/285.abstract N2 - Diabetic neuropathy is a common cause of chronic pain that is not adequately relieved by conventional analgesics. The α2-adrenoceptors are involved in the regulation of glutamatergic input and nociceptive transmission in the spinal dorsal horn, but their functional changes in diabetic neuropathy are not clear. The purpose of the present study was to determine the plasticity of presynaptic and postsynaptic α2-adrenoceptors in the control of spinal glutamatergic synaptic transmission in painful diabetic neuropathy. Whole-cell voltage-clamp recordings of lamina II neurons were performed in spinal cord slices from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. The amplitude of glutamatergic excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) evoked from the dorsal root and the frequency of spontaneous EPSCs (sEPSCs) were significantly higher in diabetic than vehicle-control rats. The specific α2-adrenoceptor agonist 5-bromo-6-(2-imidazolin-2-ylamino)quinoxaline (UK-14304) (0.1–2 μM) inhibited the frequency of sEPSCs more in diabetic than vehicle-treated rats. UK-14304 also inhibited the amplitude of evoked monosynaptic and polysynaptic EPSCs more in diabetic than control rats. Furthermore, the amplitude of postsynaptic G protein-coupled inwardly rectifying K+ channel (GIRK) currents elicited by UK-14304 was significantly larger in the diabetic group than in the control group. In addition, intrathecal administration of UK-14304 increased the nociceptive threshold more in diabetic than vehicle-control rats. Our findings suggest that diabetic neuropathy increases the activity of presynaptic and postsynaptic α2-adrenoceptors to attenuate glutamatergic transmission in the spinal dorsal horn, which accounts for the potentiated antinociceptive effect of α2-adrenoceptor activation in diabetic neuropathic pain. ER -