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Fibroblast growth factor 7 is a nociceptive modulator secreted via large dense-core vesicles Free
Hui Liu1, Qing-Feng Wu1, Jia-Yin Li1, Xing-Jun Liu1, Kai-Cheng Li1, Yan-Qing Zhong1, Dan Wu1, Qiong Wang2, Yin-Jing Lu1, Lan Bao2,3, and Xu Zhang1,3,*
1Institute of Neuroscience and State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
2State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
3School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China *Correspondence to:Xu Zhang, E-mail: xu.zhang@ion.ac.cn
J Mol Cell Biol, Volume 7, Issue 5, October 2015, 466-475,  https://doi.org/10.1093/jmcb/mjv019
Keyword: fibroblast growth factor 7, dorsal root ganglion, large dense-core vesicle, nociceptive modulator, inflammatory pain

Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 7, a member of FGF family, is initially found to be secreted from mesenchymal cells to repair epithelial tissues. However, its functions in the nervous system are largely unknown. The present study showed that FGF7 was a neuromodulator localized in the large dense-core vesicles (LDCVs) in nociceptive neurons. FGF7 was mainly expressed in small-diameter neurons of the dorsal root ganglion and could be transported to the dorsal spinal cord. Interestingly, FGF7 was mostly stored in LDCVs that did not contain neuropeptide substance P. Electrophysiological recordings in the spinal cord slice showed that buffer-applied FGF7 increased the amplitude of excitatory post-synaptic current evoked by stimulating the sensory afferent fibers. Behavior tests showed that intrathecally applied FGF7 potentiated the formalin-induced acute nociceptive response. Moreover, both acute and inflammatory nociceptive responses were significantly reduced in Fgf7-deficient mice. These results suggest that FGF7 exerts an excitatory modulation of nociceptive afferent transmission.