Figure 6

Gene markers for axotomy are upregulated in lumbar dorsal root ganglia after intraplantar MRS1477 + capsaicin. Rats received a hind paw injection of either 200 ng RTX, 30 μg CAP, 2 μg MRS1477, or 2 μg MRS1477 + 30 μg CAP and were compared to untreated paws. After 24 h, whole lumbar DRG (L4-L6) were removed, RNA was isolated, and expression of ATF3 (A), VIP (B), GAL (C), NPY (D), and MCP-1 (E) was quantified via qRT-PCR. Data were normalized to the reference gene GAPDH and then represented as the fold change relative to the untreated, contralateral DRG. Injection of MRS1477 + CAP or RTX caused a significant upregulation of ATF3, VIP, GAL, and NPY expression compared to either CAP-only, MRS1477-only, or untreated cohorts. Expression levels of VIP and NPY were also significantly upregulated following CAP-only treatment. MCP-1 expression was upregulated after RTX treatment, but not after MRS1477 + CAP.