Thalamocortical bistable switch as a theoretical model of fibromyalgia pathogenesis inferred from a literature survey.
J Comput Neurosci
; 50(4): 471-484, 2022 11.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35816263
ABSTRACT
Fibromyalgia (FM) is an unsolved central pain processing disturbance. We aim to provide a unifying model for FM pathogenesis based on a loop network involving thalamocortical regions, i.e., the ventroposterior lateral thalamus (VPL), the somatosensory cortex (SC), and the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN). The dynamics of the loop have been described by three differential equations having neuron mean firing rates as variables and containing Hill functions to model mutual interactions among the loop elements. A computational analysis conducted with MATLAB has shown a transition from monostability to bistability of the loop behavior for a weakening of GABAergic transmission between TRN and VPL. This involves the appearance of a high-firing-rate steady state, which becomes dominant and is assumed to represent pathogenic pain processing giving rise to chronic pain. Our model is consistent with a bulk of literature evidence, such as neuroimaging and pharmacological data collected on FM patients, and with correlations between FM and immunoendocrine conditions, such as stress, perimenopause, chronic inflammation, obesity, and chronic dizziness. The model suggests that critical targets for FM treatment are to be found among immunoendocrine pathways leading to GABA/glutamate imbalance having an impact on the thalamocortical system.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Fibromialgia
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Female
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article