Changes in Ionic Conductance Signature of Nociceptive Neurons Underlying Fabry Disease Phenotype

• The first symptom arising in many Fabry patients is neuropathic pain due to changes in small myelinated and unmyelinated fibers in the periphery, which is subsequently followed by a loss of sensory perception. Here we studied changes in the peripheral nervous system of Fabry patients and a Fabry mouse model induced by deletion of a-galactosidase A (Gla(-/0)). The skin innervation of Gla(-/0) mice resembles that of the human Fabry patients. In Fabry diseased humans and Gla(-/0) mice, we observed similar sensory abnormalities, which were also observed in nerve fiber recordings in both patients and mice. Electrophysiological recordings of cultured Gla(-/0) nociceptors revealed that the conductance of voltage-gated Na+ and Ca2+ currents was decreased in Gla(-/0) nociceptors, whereas the activation of voltage-gated K+ currents was at more depolarized potentials. Conclusively, we have observed that reduced sensory perception due to small-fiber degeneration coincides with altered electrophysiological properties of sensory neurons.

Nyckelord

Fabry disease

lysosomal storage disorder

single fiber recordings

neuronal excitability

electrophysiology

nociception

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