{"id":14725,"date":"2018-12-17T17:00:31","date_gmt":"2018-12-17T16:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/?p=14725"},"modified":"2024-03-22T12:06:30","modified_gmt":"2024-03-22T11:06:30","slug":"using-light-to-stop-itch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/news\/science\/using-light-to-stop-itch\/","title":{"rendered":"Using light to stop itch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Although it gives temporary relief, scratching only makes things worse because it can cause skin damage, additional inflammation and even more itch. EMBL researchers have now found a way to stop itch with light in mice. <em>Nature Biomedical Engineering<\/em> publishes their results on 17 December 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The specialized nerve cells that sense itch are located in the upper surface of the skin. Linda Nocchi, Paul Heppenstall and colleagues at EMBL Rome developed a light-sensitive chemical that binds <em>only<\/em> to those cells. By first injecting a mouse\u2019s affected skin area with the chemical and then illuminating it with near-infrared light, the itch-sensing cells withdraw from the skin. This stops the itch and allows the skin to heal.<\/p>\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"vf-embed vf-embed--custom-ratio\"\n\n  style=\"--vf-embed-max-width: 100%;\n    --vf-embed-custom-ratio-x: 640;\n    --vf-embed-custom-ratio-y: 360;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EtQHu-9O-lA\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The effect of the treatment can last several months. Other types of nerve cells in your skin &#8211; which make you feel specific sensations like pain, vibration, cold or heat &#8211; are not affected by the light treatment: the skin only stops itching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Eczema and amyloidosis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The method works well in mice with eczema (AD: atopic dermatitis), and a rare genetic skin disease called amyloidosis (FPLCA: familial primary localized cutaneous amyloidosis), for which there\u2019s currently no cure. \u201cFor me, the most exciting part of this project was seeing the improvements in the animals&#8217; health\u201d, says Linda Nocchi, first author of the paper and postdoctoral researcher in the Heppenstall group. \u201cTheir skin looked much better after treatment and they scratched less.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe hope that one day, our method will be able to help humans suffering from a disease like eczema, which causes chronic itching\u201d, says Paul Heppenstall, who led the study. It is already known that mice and humans have the same target molecule for itch therapy: a small protein called Interleukin 31 (IL-31). One of the team\u2019s next steps will be to test the light therapy in human tissues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Previously, the Heppenstall group <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-018-04049-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">published a method<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/science\/managing-chronic-pain-with-light\/\">manage chronic pain with light<\/a>. \u201cWe think that the mechanism we&#8217;ve discovered might be a general method for controlling sensation through the skin\u201d, says Heppenstall. \u201cOur goal now is to take these therapies further. We want to collaborate with industry partners to develop therapies for humans, but also for veterinary medicine, as itch is a major problem in dogs as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This project in the Heppenstall group at EMBL Rome was financed by <\/em><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"http:\/\/www.telethon.it\/en\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Telethon Foundation<\/em><\/a><em>: a leading Italian charity investing in the research of rare genetic diseases.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"vf-divider\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"it\">Usare la luce per fermare il prurito<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Il prurito \u00e8 una delle sensazioni pi\u00f9 fastidiose possibili; per malattie croniche della pelle come l\u2019eczema, \u00e8 uno dei sintomi principali. E sebbene possa dare sollievo momentaneo, grattarsi peggiora solo la situazione, perch\u00e9 causa danno alla pelle, infiammazione e, alla fine, prurito. Ora dei ricercatori dell\u2019EMBL-Roma, grazie anche a un finanziamento da Fondazione Telethon, hanno trovato un modo per fermare il prurito con la luce e dimostrato che funziona nei modelli murini.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Le cellule nervose specializzate nel sentire il prurito sono localizzate nella parte superiore della pelle, appena sotto la superfice. Linda Nocchi, Paul Heppenstal e i loro colleghi all\u2019EMBL di Roma hanno sviluppato una sostanza chimica sensibile alla luce che si lega specificamente solo a quelle cellule. Iniettando la sostanza nella pelle dei topi e poi illuminando la con luce infrarossa, le cellule che percepiscono il prurito si ritraggono dalla superfice, bloccando la sensazione di prurito e permettendo alla pelle di guarire.<\/p>\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"vf-embed vf-embed--custom-ratio\"\n\n  style=\"--vf-embed-max-width: 100%;\n    --vf-embed-custom-ratio-x: 640;\n    --vf-embed-custom-ratio-y: 360;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NCKjBp6Tqqw\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>L\u2019effetto di un trattamento pu\u00f2 durare per molti mesi. L\u2019effetto non e\u2019 irriversibile perche dopo questo periodo, le terminazioni nervose sulla pelle responsabili della percezione del prurito si rigenerano. Gli altri tipi di cellule nervose che innervano la pelle \u2013 che servono a sentire sensazioni come il dolore, il freddo e il caldo, o le vibrazioni, non sono colpite dal trattamento: la luce ferma solo il prurito.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Il metodo funziona bene nei topi con l\u2019eczema (dermatite atopica) e con una malattia rara della pelle chiamata amiloidosi (FPLCA: amiloidosi cutanea familiare primaria), per la quale al momento non esiste cura. \u201cLa parte pi\u00f9 emozionante di questo progetto per me \u00e8 stato vedere il miglioramento di salute degli animali\u201d, spiega Linda Nocchi, autore della pubblicazione e ricercatrice post-doc nel gruppo di ricerca di Heppenstall. \u201cLa pelle era pi\u00f9 sana dopo il trattamento e si grattavano di meno\u201d.<br \/>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"vf-figure wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"vf-figure__image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.de\/aboutus\/communication_outreach\/media_relations\/2018\/1217_NatureBE_Heppenstall\/NatBE-Heppenstall-ib.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"vf-figure__caption\">Sezioni di pelle di modelli murini con la malattia genetica rara amiloidosi, prima (sinistra) e dopo (destra) il trattamento. Le frecce indicano gli aggregati che rendono la pelle ruvida e dura e causano il prurito. Dopo il trattamento questi aggregati sono molto ridotti, permettendo alla pelle di guarire.&nbsp;IMAGES: Paul Heppenstall and Linda Nocchi \/ EMBL<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cLa nostra speranza \u00e8 che un giorno questo metodo possa aiutare esseri umani che soffrono di malattie che causano prurito cronico, come l\u2019eczema\u201d, spiega Paul Heppenstall, che ha guidato lo studio. Sappiamo gi\u00e0 che topi e esseri umani hanno la stessa molecola bersaglio per la terapia del prurito, una piccola proteina chiamata Interleuchina 31 (IL-31). Il prossimo passo per il team sar\u00e0 testare l\u2019efficacia della terapia con luce infrarossa nei tessuti umani.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Recentemente, il gruppo di Heppenstall ha scoperto un meccanismo per gestire il dolore cronico utilizzando la luce. \u201cCrediamo che il meccanismo che abbiamo scoperto possa essere un metodo generale per controllare le sensazioni attraverso la pelle\u201d spiega Heppenstall. \u201cIl nostro obiettivo ora \u00e8 portare avanti queste terapie, in collaborazione con partner industriali, e svilupparle per l\u2019uso umano ma anche per la medicina veterinaria, visto che il prurito pu\u00f2 essere un problema grave anche per i cani.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Il progetto del gruppo di Heppenstal all\u2019EMBL di Roma \u00e8 stato finanziato da&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.telethon.it\/\" target=\"_blank\">Fondazione Telethon<\/a>,&nbsp;che proprio in questi giorni sta promuovendo #presente, la campagna di sensibilizzazione e raccolta fondi per la ricerca scientifica contro le malattie genetiche rare. I pazienti e le loro famiglie hanno infatti bisogno di persone \u201cpresenti\u201d, che rispondano all\u2019appello con donazioni e azioni. Fino al 22 dicembre, inoltre, si terr\u00e0 la ventottesima edizione della maratona televisiva in collaborazione con la RAI.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sempre per rispondere \u201cpresente\u201d all\u2019appello di Fondazione Telethon, fino al 22 dicembre sar\u00e0 possibile donare inviando un sms o chiamando il numero solidale 45510.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EMBL researchers have found a way to stop itch with light in mice<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":14726,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17591],"tags":[5694,477,735,736,612,613,615,606,1748,5686,514,611],"embl_taxonomy":[],"class_list":["post-14725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","category-science-technology","tag-amyloidosis","tag-heppenstall","tag-itch","tag-laser","tag-light","tag-nerve","tag-neuron","tag-pain","tag-press-release","tag-rare-disease","tag-rome","tag-skin"],"acf":{"article_intro":"<p>Itch is easily one of the most annoying sensations. For chronic skin diseases like eczema, it\u2019s a major symptom.<\/p>\n","related_links":[{"link_description":"Research of the Heppenstall group","link_url":"https:\/\/www.embl.it\/research\/unit\/heppenstall\/index.html"}],"article_sources":[{"source_description":"<p>Nocchi, L., <em>et al<\/em>. Interleukin-31-mediated photoablation of pruritogenic epidermal neurons reduces itch-associated behaviours in mice. <em>Nature Biomedical Engineering<\/em>, published online 17 December 2018. DOI: 10.1038\/s41551-018-0328-5<\/p>\n","source_link_url":"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1038\/s41551-018-0328-5"}],"vf_locked":false,"featured":false,"color":"#007B53","link_color":"#fff","show_featured_image":false,"in_this_article":false,"youtube_url":"","mp4_url":"","video_caption":"","translations":[{"translation_language":"Italian","translation_anchor":"#it"}],"press_contact":"EMBL Generic","embl_taxonomy_term_who":false,"embl_taxonomy_term_what":false,"embl_taxonomy_term_where":false},"embl_taxonomy_terms":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Using light to stop itch | EMBL<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"EMBL scientists have found a way to stop itch with light in mice. 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