Abstract
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic condition characterized by persistent widespread pain that negatively affects the quality of life of patients. The WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway seems to be involved in central sensitization and different pain states. The objective of this study was to investigate the beneficial effects of a new compound called Hidrox® (HD), containing 40–50% hydroxytyrosol, in counteracting the pain associated with FM. An FM-like model was induced in rats by subcutaneous injections of reserpine (1 mg/kg) for three consecutive days. Later, HD (10 mg/kg) was administered orally to the animals for seven days. Reserpine injections induced WNT/β-catenin pathway activation, release of pro-inflammatory mediators as well as a significant increase in oxidative stress. Daily treatment with HD was able to modulate the WNT/β-catenin and Nrf2 pathways and consequently attenuate the behavioral deficits and microglia activation induced by reserpine injection. These results indicate that nutritional consumption of HD can be considered as a new therapeutic approach for human FM.
Highlights
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a disorder characterized by widespread pain throughout the body, accompanied by other symptoms such as fatigue, sleep and mood disturbances, and cognitive dysfunction [1,2,3]
We determined the expression of β-catenin, a down-stream effector of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway
Consistent with this, we confirmed that Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) expression significantly increased in spinal cords with FM, while it decreased in a significant manner after oral administration of HD
Summary
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a disorder characterized by widespread pain throughout the body, accompanied by other symptoms such as fatigue, sleep and mood disturbances, and cognitive dysfunction [1,2,3]. Wnt family proteins are known to play a critical role in several forms of chronic and neuropathic pain [6,7,8]. Three Wnt signaling pathways have been identified; the canonical Wnt/β-catenin pathway is the best studied and appears to be involved in the pathophysiology of various CNS disorders [9,10,11]. In this pathway, Wnt ligands bind to the cysteine-rich domain frizzled (FZ) receptors which in turn activate several intracellular signaling cascades.
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