The locus coeruleus noradrenergic system gates deficits in visual attention induced by chronic pain.

The locus coeruleus noradrenergic system gates deficits in visual attention induced by chronic pain.
Behav Brain Res. 2020 Mar 17;:112600
Authors: Moazen P, Torabi M, Azizi H, Fathollahi Y, Mirnajafi-Zadeh J, Semnanian S
Abstract
Despite years of research on pain comorbidity with affective disorders and cognitive deficits, it is still unclear how deficit in attention co-occurs with chronic pain. It is likely that altered neuroplasticity and or dysregulated neurotransmitters induced by chronic pain, at which pain and cognitive processing systems overlap, may have a negative effect on cognitive processing such as attention. One of the main common networks involved in attentional and pain processing is the noradrenergic system originating from the locus coeruleus (LC). We hypothesized that heightened noradrenaline release from LC induced by chronic pain could cause a deficit in visual attention. For this purpose, performance on the 5-choice serial reaction time test (5-CSRTT) was tested in animals with and without a chronic constriction injury and a selective depletion of noradrenaline in the LC. In addition, pain sensitivity was measured via mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia. We found that the increase in pain sensitivity following chronic pain correlates with a decline in executive functions as measured by 5-CSRTT. This was true in conditions of both low and high attentional demand. Interestingly, a selective depletion of ...

Source: Behavioural Brain Research - March 16, 2020 Category: Neurology Authors: Moazen P, Torabi M, Azizi H, Fathollahi Y, Mirnajafi-Zadeh J, Semnanian S Tags: Behav Brain Res Source Type: research