San Francisco, California – Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have made a groundbreaking discovery in the field of chronic pain treatment. Through a new study, scientists have found that female hormones can activate immune cells near the spinal cord to produce natural opioids, minimizing pain signals before they reach the brain.
The study reveals that hormone-driven relief is possible due to estrogen and progesterone prompting these immune cells, known as T regulatory cells (T-regs), to release opioids. This discovery could potentially lead to the development of sex-specific therapies for chronic pain and shed light on why some pain treatments work better for women.
The research team, led by Elora Midavaine, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at UCSF, uncovered an entirely new role for T-regs. These cells, traditionally known for reducing inflammation, are now understood to produce the painkilling molecule enkephalin in response to hormonal signals.
Further studies showed that female mice without T-regs became more sensitive to pain, while male mice did not exhibit the same response. This sex-specific difference highlights the importance of T-regs in managing pain, particularly in females.
Dr. Sakeen Kashem, an assistant professor of dermatology at UCSF, expressed surprise at the discovery of this sex-dependent influence driven by estrogen and progesterone. The team’s findings, published in the journal Science, suggest a communication pathway between the immune system and neurons responsible for detecting sensation.
The researchers are currently investigating the possibility of engineering T-regs to continuously produce enkephalin, offering a potential new approach for chronic pain relief. This could be significant for the millions of individuals suffering from untreated chronic pain, presenting an opportunity for more effective treatments tailored to individual sex differences.
The study’s findings have opened up new possibilities for understanding pain modulation, offering hope for better pain management strategies in the future. By exploring the role of immune cells in pain processing, researchers are paving the way for innovative therapies that could transform the lives of many experiencing chronic pain.