London: Ever wondered why some people feel
more pain than others from minor injuries? Well, that is
because of a gene, scientists have found.
Scientists at Cambridge University have discovered the
`pain gene` known as SCN9A which makes some people more
sensitive to and less able to tolerate pain.
According to the researchers, their findings could pave
the way for new gene therapy in future to treat patients with
chronic pain.
Dr Geoffrey Woods, who led the study, said that finding
a gene responsible for pain could greatly increase the ability
to conquer and control it.
"The search for effective analgesics (pain relieving
drugs) with acceptable side effects has long been the goal of
doctors and biomedical researchers," he was quoted as saying
by The Telegraph.
"Because current therapies have limited efficacy
(effectiveness), with up to 50 per cent of treated subjects
receiving inadequate pain relief, there exists a significant
need to develop better therapies."
In their study of 578 people with osteoarthritis, the
scientists found the gene which is present in patients with
sciatica, phantom pain, back problems and pancreatitis.
A subsequent analysis of 186 healthy women showed that
those with the gene had enhanced pain sensations.
The researchers found the protein made by the mutated
version of the gene SCN9A stays open longer than the normal
one and this, they believe, increases the activation of nerves
that produce sensations of dull, aching pain. Millions of people worldwide suffer with chronic pain,
as a result of injury or arthritis, which affects every aspect
of their lives, and often results in depression.
The researchers said the drugs which can modify the
protein`s activity could prove effective painkillers and their
study could also help explain some of the genetic reasons
behind why patients respond differently to different classes
of painkillers.
Dr Woods said: "As individuals appear to have differing
genetic susceptibilities to pain, future studies should be
directed toward understanding whether responsiveness to
different classes of analgesics is also genetically
determined."
The research, published in Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences, mirrors similar findings from Mount Sinai
School of Medicine in New York in 2008 that found gene
transplants could greatly reduce pain in a similar way to
opiates but without the side-effects.
PTI