Urocortin 3 is a neuropeptide that belongs to the corticotropin-releasing hormone family and is involved in mechanosensation and stress regulation. In this study, we show that Urocortin 3 marks a population of excitatory neurons in the mouse spinal cord, divided into 2 nonoverlapping subpopulations expressing protein kinase C gamma or calretinin/calbindin 2, populations previously associated with mechanosensation. Electrophysiological experiments demonstrated that lumbar spinal Urocortin 3 neurons receive both glycinergic and GABAergic local tonic inhibition, and monosynaptic inputs from both Aβ and C fibers, which could be confirmed by retrograde trans-synaptic rabies tracing. Furthermore, fos analyses showed that subpopulations of lumbar Urocortin 3 neurons are activated by artificial scratching or Compound 48/80-induced sensations. Chemogenetic activation of lumbar Urocortin 3-Cre neurons evoked a targeted biting/licking behavior towards the corresponding dermatome and chemogenetic inhibition decreased Compound 48/80-induced behavior. Hence, spinal lumbar Urocortin 3 neurons represent a mechanically associated population with roles in both scratching and Compound 48/80-induced sensations.

中文翻译：

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表达脊髓腰椎 Urocortin 3 的神经元与搔抓和化合物 48/80 诱导的感觉有关。


Urocortin 3 是一种神经肽，属于促肾上皮质激素释放激素家族，参与机械感觉和压力调节。在这项研究中，我们表明 Urocortin 3 标记小鼠脊髓中的兴奋性神经元群，分为 2 个表达蛋白激酶 C γ 或钙调蛋白/钙结合蛋白 2 的非重叠亚群，这些亚群以前与机械感觉相关。电生理实验表明，腰椎 Urocortin 3 神经元同时接受甘氨酸能和 GABA 能局部强直性抑制，以及来自 Aβ 和 C 纤维的单突触输入，这可以通过逆行跨突触狂犬病示踪来证实。此外，fos 分析表明，腰椎 Urocortin 3 神经元的亚群被人工抓挠或 Compound 48/80 诱导的感觉激活。腰椎 Urocortin 3-Cre 神经元的化学发生学激活引起了对相应皮节的靶向咬/舔行为，而化学发生学抑制减少了化合物 48/80 诱导的行为。因此，脊髓腰椎 Urocortin 3 神经元代表一个机械相关的群体，在抓挠和化合物 48/80 诱导的感觉中发挥作用。