Papers of the Week

Functional disorders (i.e., interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and irritable bowel syndrome) are associated with hyperexcitability of afferent nerves innervating the urinary tract and the bowel respectively. Various non-5-HT receptor mRNA transcripts are expressed in mouse urothelium and exert functional responses to 5-HT. Whilst 5-HT receptors were not detected in mouse urothelium, 5-HT receptors expressed on bladder sensory neurons plays a role in bladder afferent excitability under both normal conditions and in a mouse model of chronic visceral hypersensitivity (CVH). These data suggest that the role 5-HT receptors play in bladder afferent signaling warrants further study as a potential therapeutic target for functional bladder disorders.