Effects of repeated milnacipran and fluvoxamine treatment on mechanical allodynia in a mouse paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain model

Abstract

Paclitaxel is widely used in cancer chemotherapy for the treatment of solid tumors, but it frequently causes peripheral neuropathy. Milnacipran, a serotonin/noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor and fluvoxamine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, have shown efficacy against several chronic pain syndromes. In this study, we investigated the attenuation of paclitaxel-induced mechanical allodynia in mice by milnacipran and fluvoxamine. Paclitaxel was administered once per day (2 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)) for 5 days to mice. Mechanical allodynia was evaluated by measuring the withdrawal response to stimulation with a von Frey filament. In paclitaxel-treated mice, mechanical allodynia was observed on days 3-15 of paclitaxel administration. A single administration of milnacipran (20 mg/kg, i.p.) or fluvoxamine (40 mg/kg, i.p.) had no effect on paclitaxel- induced mechanical allodynia. However, repeated administration of milnacipran (10, 20 mg/kg, once per day, i.p.) for 5 days significantly reduced paclitaxel-induced mechanical allodynia. In contrast, repeated fluvoxamine administration (40 mg/kg, once per day, i.p.) for 5 days resulted in a weak attenuation of paclitaxel-induced mechanical allodynia. These results suggest that chronic paclitaxel administration induces mechanical allodynia, and that repeated milnacipran administration may be an effective therapeutic approach for the treatment of neuropathic pain caused by paclitaxel treatment for cancer.