ArticleCell reports2022
A non-canonical retina-ipRGCs-SCN-PVT visual pathway for mediating contagious itch behavior.
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Article in Cell reports, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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12 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- Supraspinal Circuit Mechanisms Underlying Itch Processing.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2026Review
- Central neural circuits underlying itch sensation.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2025Review
- A stress-sensing circuit signals to the central pacemaker to reprogram circadian rhythms.Science advances · 2025Article
- Functional Roles of Gastrin-Releasing Peptide-Producing Neurons in the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus: Insights into Photic Entrainment and Circadian Regulation.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2025Article
- Light, Sound, and Melatonin: Investigating Multisensory Pathways for Visual Restoration.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2025Review
- Distinct oxytocin signaling pathways synergistically mediate rescue-like behavior in mice.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Review
- Light-eye-body axis: exploring the network from retinal illumination to systemic regulation.Theranostics · 2025Review
- Social interactions and olfactory cues are required for contagious itch in mice.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- The cognitive impact of light: illuminating ipRGC circuit mechanisms.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2024Review
- Structures of human gastrin-releasing peptide receptors bound to antagonist and agonist for cancer and itch therapy.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
25 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Fang GaoCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Jun MaCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Yao-Qing YuCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710038, P. R. China.
Xiao-Fei GaoCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Yang BaiCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology & K.K. Leung Brain Research Centre, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, P. R. China.
Yi SunCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology & K.K. Leung Brain Research Centre, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, P. R. China.
Juan LiuCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Xianyu LiuCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Devin M BarryCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Steven WilhelmCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Tyler Piccinni-AshCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Na WangCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Dongyang LiuCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Pain Management, the State Key Clinical Specialty in Pain Medicine, the Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510260, P.R. China.
Rachel A RossDepartment of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine Rose F. Kennedy Center, Bronx, NY, USA.
Yan HaoCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Xu HuangInstitutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science and Institute for Medical and Engineering Innovation, Eye & ENT Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China.
Jin-Jing JiaCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Qianyi YangCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Hao ZhengInstitutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science and Institute for Medical and Engineering Innovation, Eye & ENT Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China.
Johan van NispenCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Jun ChenInstitute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710038, P. R. China.
Hui LiDepartment of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology & K.K. Leung Brain Research Centre, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, P. R. China.
Jiayi ZhangInstitutes of Brain Science, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science and Institute for Medical and Engineering Innovation, Eye & ENT Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China.
Yun-Qing LiDepartment of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology & K.K. Leung Brain Research Centre, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, P. R. China.
Zhou-Feng ChenCenter for the Study of Itch and Sensory Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA. Electronic address: chenz@wustl.edu.
Washington University in St. Louis · USAir Force Medical University · CNEye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University · CNAlbert Einstein College of Medicine · US
Funding
MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF THE ITCH SENSATION IN THE SPINAL CORDR01AR056318 · NIAMS · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI CHEN, ZHOUFENG · 2009 to 2018
$4.5MMECHANISMS OF DESENSITIZATION OF MOR1D-GRPR CROSSTALKR01DA037261 · NIDA · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI CHEN, ZHOUFENG · 2015 to 2019
$2.1MUNDERSTANDING MECHANISMS THAT BLOCK GRPR-MEDIATED CHRONIC ITCHR01NS094344 · NINDS · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI CHEN, ZHOUFENG · 2015 to 2019
$1.8MCentral mechanisms of itch transmissionR01NS113938 · NINDS · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI CHEN, ZHOUFENG · 2021 to 2023
$1.5MNIAMS NIH HHS R01 AR056318NIDA NIH HHS R01 DA037261NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS094344NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS113938
Abstract
Contagious itch behavior informs conspecifics of adverse environment and is crucial for the survival of social animals. Gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) and its receptor (GRPR) in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus mediates contagious itch behavior in mice. Here, we show that intrinsically photosensitive retina ganglion cells (ipRGCs) convey visual itch information, independently of melanopsin, from the retina to GRP neurons via PACAP-PAC1R signaling. Moreover, GRPR neurons relay itch information to the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT). Surprisingly, neither the visual cortex nor superior colliculus is involved in contagious itch. In vivo calcium imaging and extracellular recordings reveal contagious itch-specific neural dynamics of GRPR neurons. Thus, we propose that the retina-ipRGC-SCN-PVT pathway constitutes a previously unknown visual pathway that probably evolved for motion vision that encodes salient environmental cues and enables animals to imitate behaviors of conspecifics as an anticipatory mechanism to cope with adverse conditions.
Indexed as
Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating PolypeptideVisual PathwaysAnimalsCalciumGastrin-Releasing PeptideMicePruritusRetinaRetinal Ganglion CellsSuprachiasmatic NucleusCalciumGastrin-Releasing PeptidePituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptidecontagious itch behaviorCP: NeuroscienceGRPGRPRipRGCsitch stimulineural dynamicsPACAPSCNscratching motionstress
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