This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Williams, J. P. Articles by Lambert, D. G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Williams, J. P. Articles by Lambert, D. G. Related Collections Mechanisms Preclinical Pharmacology Pharmacology

---

ANESTHETIC PHARMACOLOGY

Human Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells Produce Pre-Pro-Nociceptin/Orphanin FQ mRNA

John P. Williams, FRCA^*, Jonathan P. Thompson, MD, FRCA^*, David J. Rowbotham, MD, FRCA, and David G. Lambert, PhD^*

From the Departments of *Cardiovascular Sciences (Pharmacology and Therapeutics Group), and Health Sciences, Division of Anaesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Management, University of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester, UK.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Prof. D. G. Lambert, Department of Cardiovascular Sciences (Pharmacology and Therapeutics Group), Division of Anaesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Management, University of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester, LE1 5WW, UK. Address e-mail to DGL3{at}le.ac.uk.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) transcribe mRNA for the nonclassical opioid nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ) receptor (NOP). We probed for the N/OFQ precursor, pre-pro-N/OFQ (ppN/OFQ).

METHODS: Using PBMC from 10 healthy volunteers we probed for ppN/OFQ using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based experimental paradigms.

RESULTS: In gel-based PCR, we detected amplicons consistent with ppN/OFQ mRNA in all samples. This was confirmed in quantitative real-time PCR with cycle thresholds (representing quantity of mRNA) of 30.91 ± 0.18 (n = 10).

CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that PBMCs transcribe ppN/OFQ which, coupled with NOP expression, suggest NOP may be involved in the autoregulation of PBMCs.