ABSTRACT
Objective:To study the expression of adult and neonatal Nav1.5 isoforms in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons of rats with spared nerve injury (SNI) . Methods:The expression of adult and neonatal Nav1.5 isoforms in the DRG neurons of rats with SNI was detected by RT-PCR, DNA sequencing, restriction enzyme digestion, immunohistochemistry and immunofluo-rescence methods. The expression of PKC-γwas detected by Western blot. Results:Both adult and neonatal Nav1.5 isoforms were expressed in the DRG neurons, but their expression ratio was approximately 2.5∶1. In SNI rat models, the expression of both adult and neonatal Nav1.5 isoforms decreased by approximately a half in both mRNA and protein levels. In contrast, the expression of PKC-γincreased by approximately one-fold. Conclusions:Both adult and neonatal Nav1.5 isoforms expressed in the DRG neurons of rat,but their expression levels decrease in pain models. The up-regulation of PKC-γmay directly or indirectly down-regulate the expression of Nav1.5 isoforms in SNI rat models,which may further involve in the pathological process of neuropathic pain.