NKG2D receptor ligands are cell surface biomarkers for injured murine and human nociceptive sensory neurons

Abstract

Nociceptors are primary afferent neurons that sense noxious stimuli. They can be activated by tissue injury as well as the accompanying local immune response. We have shown that following nerve injury in mice, cytotoxic Natural Killer (NK) cells infiltrate the peripheral nerve where they interact with stress-induced ligands of the activating receptor NKG2D (Klrk1). However, the diversity and specificity of NKG2D receptor ligands among sensory neuron subtypes, and translation of this mechanism to human cells, remains unknown. We used dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons cultured from C57BL/6J mice of both sexes with fluorescently labelled sensory neuron lines, as well as human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived sensory neurons after laser ablation, as in vitro models of axonal injury.

Daniel (Danny) Hyeongcheol Kim

Human-Centered AI
Researcher & Builder

HCAI researcher and builder, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at KAIST and co-founder of KEONIX Labs.