A type of vitamin B3 might treat chronic pain related to inflammation
Chronic pain can outlast inflammation, the usual driver of pain in the body – a study in mice suggests a vitamin supplement could help relieve it
By Grace Wade
8 November 2023
The mitochondria in certain sensory neurons could be linked to chronic pain
nobeastsofierce Science / Alamy
A type of vitamin B3, called nicotinamide riboside, alleviates persistent pain in mice, suggesting that it may potentially treat chronic pain in humans as well.
Inflammation – the body’s first line of defence against injury and pathogens – is a main driver of pain. Yet, some people continue to experience pain even after inflammation has resolved.
To understand why, Niels Eijkelkamp at Utrecht University in the Netherlands and his colleagues analysed inflammation’s impact on mitochondria, the powerhouses of cells. Previous research has linked chronic pain to dysfunctional mitochondria, particularly those in specialised nerve cells, called sensory neurons, which detect changes in the environment.
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The researchers injected a substance that triggers inflammation into the hind paws of 15 mice. They then measured the amount of oxygen consumed by mitochondria in the sensory neurons of the animals, which indicates mitochondrial function. They found that a week later, after inflammation had resolved, mitochondria consumed significantly more oxygen than they had before the injection, suggesting inflammation caused lasting changes to their function. Further experiments linked these mitochondrial changes to greater pain sensitivity in the rodents even after their inflammation resolved.
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The researchers then analysed the molecular byproducts of chemical reactions, called metabolites, inside the mitochondria of the animals. They compared these to the mitochondrial metabolites in mice that had not experienced induced inflammation. The team found that after inflammation had resolved, mice had lower than expected levels of nicotinamide riboside in the mitochondria of their sensory neurons. This is a type of vitamin B3 critical for mitochondrial function.
