More than Scratching the Surface: Recent Progress in Brain Mechanisms Underlying Itch and Scratch

• 来源期刊: 神经科学通报（英文版）
• 年，卷（期）: 2020,（1）
• 页码范围: 85-88
• 页数: 4页
• 语种: 英文

摘要

Itch (also called pruritus) is an unpleasant somatosensation that evokes a desire or reflex to scratch in humans and other mammals [1].Itch is now considered to be a unique sensory modality that is encoded by a labeled line that has genetically distinguishable neurons in the peripheral and central nervous systems [1].Acute itch evokes scratching that may help to remove potentially harmful irritants from the skin,which is believed to be evolutionarily important for survival.Pathological chronic itch often occurs in patients with inflammatory skin diseases,systemic diseases,and neurological conditions.Importantly,chronic itch causes uncontrollable itch-scratch cycles that induce skin damage,affect sleep,and seriously reduce the quality of life [2].At present,effective treatment for chronic itch is still lacking,possibly due to limited understanding of the mechanism of itch information-processing in the nervous system.Therefore,elucidation of the molecular,cellular,and circuitry mechanisms of itch will eventually help to develop new effective strategies for the management of chronic itch.