ReviewCellular and molecular neurobiology2023
AQP4 is an Emerging Regulator of Pathological Pain: A Narrative Review.
Review in Cellular and molecular neurobiology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 7 citations in OpenAlex.
- Unveiling the glymphatic system's impact on neurodegenerative diseases: a comprehensive bibliometric analysis (2012-2024).Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- ROS-Responsive Trifluoperazine Prodrug Nanoparticles and Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes Synergistically Modulate Astrocyte Phenotype for Spinal Cord Injury Repair.ACS applied materials & interfaces · 2026Article
- Glymphatic and neurofluidic dysfunction in classical trigeminal neuralgia: a multimodal MRI study of brain-CSF functional and structural dynamics.BMC medical imaging · 2025Article
- Glymphatic dysfunction in classical trigeminal neuralgia: DTI-ALPS index stratification from healthy controls to post-MVD.The journal of headache and pain · 2025Article
- The neuro-immune axis in cancer: mechanisms of innervation-driven tumor progression and therapeutic opportunities.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Pathological pain presents significant challenges in clinical practice and research. Aquaporin-4 (AQP4), which is primarily found in astrocytes, is being considered as a prospective modulator of pathological pain. This review examines the association between AQP4 and pain-related diseases, including cancer pain, neuropathic pain, and inflammatory pain. In cancer pain, upregulated AQP4 expression in tumor cells is linked to increased pain severity, potentially through tumor-induced inflammation and edema. Targeting AQP4 may offer therapeutic strategies for managing cancer pain. AQP4 has also been found to play a role in nerve damage. Changes in AQP4 expression have been detected in pain-related regions of the brain and spinal cord; thus, modulating AQP4 expression or function may provide new avenues for treating neuropathic pain. Of note, AQP4-deficient mice exhibit reduced chronic pain responses, suggesting potential involvement of AQP4 in chronic pain modulation, and AQP4 is involved in pain modulation during inflammation, so understanding AQP4-mediated pain modulation may lead to novel anti-inflammatory and analgesic therapies. Recent advancements in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques enable assessment of AQP4 expression and localization, contributing to our understanding of its involvement in brain edema and clearance pathways related to pathological pain. Furthermore, targeting AQP4 through gene therapies and small-molecule modulators shows promise as a potential therapeutic intervention. Future research should focus on utilizing advanced MRI techniques to observe glymphatic system changes and the exchange of cerebrospinal fluid and interstitial fluid. Additionally, investigating the regulation of AQP4 by non-coding RNAs and exploring novel small-molecule medicines are important directions for future research. This review shed light on AQP4-based innovative therapeutic strategies for the treatment of pathological pain. Dark blue cells represent astrocytes, green cells represent microglia, and red ones represent brain microvasculature.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.