Disruption of the blood-nerve barrier contributes to pruritus
LIU Yuepeng
Abstract：Itchy substances originating from blood cells and associated nerve signaling are necessary for the happening of pruritus.The blood-nerve barrier (BNB) is a structure existing between blood vessels and nerve endings.Disruption of the BNB,which occurs in many pathological conditions,results in nerve inflammation and pain.Previous studies have demonstrated that BNB disruption and pruritus often coexist in the same diseases,such as diabetic neuropathy and chronic kidney disease.And cold pack therapy relieves pruritus while warm water exacerbates pruritus;pinching the calf or sitting cross-legged could relieve pruritus on feet and exerting substantial pressure on the itch site could relieve itch induced by the mosquito.According to the above references and facts,we hypothesize that disruption of the BNB is a critical step in the development of pruritus,and itchy substances and itch-associated nerve signaling are the basis of pruritus.This hypothesis emphasizes that the broken BNB is the most critical reason for pruritus rather than itchy substances or itch-associated nerve signaling,which can be used to explain the mechanism of pruritus in several pathological conditions and may lead to the development of new treatment in the clinic.
Keywords：pruritusitchblood-nerve barrierdiabetes mellituschronic kidney diseaseendothelial cells
Publication Date：2020-08-28
Online Publishing Date：2026-08-26(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：5( 30-33,37 )