Transcriptional changes after spinal cord injury: recruitment of afferents distal to the site of injury

Nociceptors are thought to play an important role in chronic pain, but the heterogeneity of this population has made it challenging to understand the underlying mechanisms that attribute pain modalities to specific cell types. We screened for transcript changes within a population of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) cells that are known to be responsible for pain transduction 4 days following spinal cord injury (SCI) to identify genes not previously known to play a role in the transition from chronic to acute pain. We identified genes that had not previously been recognized as major contributors in the development of chronic pain, as well as confirmed previously identified transcription factors already known to play a role in chronic pain. Overall design: Examination of mRNA profiles in subpopulation of dorsal root ganglion cells after spinal cord injury, followed by quantitative PCR analysis.