Papers of the Week

Neuropathic pain is caused by damage to or dysfunction of the somatosensory nervous system. The main mechanisms underlying neuropathic pain including ectopic activity in nociceptive nerves, peripheral and central sensitization, impaired inhibitory modulation, and microglial activation. Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) make up a large family of growth factors that mediate neural development, metabolism, and function through three main key signaling pathways, including RAS/MAP kinase pathway, PI3 kinase/Akt pathway, and PLCγ. An association between the members of the FGF system and improvement of neuropathic pain has become evident, recently. These signaling molecules may be expected to provide new drug targets for the treatment of neuropathic pain. To our best knowledge, it is the first that reviews the relationship between some members of the FGF system and neuropathic pain.