Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions
The recent SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has underscored the significance of viral infections, affecting billions of lives and costing trillions of dollars globally. Even beyond SARS-CoV-2, common infections with viruses like influenza, HIV, and herpesviruses have profound impacts beyond their typical manifes...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Pain Research |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpain.2025.1527106/full |
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| author | Sara A. Dochnal Steven P. Cohen Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Yury I. Miller Tony L. Yaksh |
| author_facet | Sara A. Dochnal Steven P. Cohen Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Yury I. Miller Tony L. Yaksh |
| author_sort | Sara A. Dochnal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The recent SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has underscored the significance of viral infections, affecting billions of lives and costing trillions of dollars globally. Even beyond SARS-CoV-2, common infections with viruses like influenza, HIV, and herpesviruses have profound impacts beyond their typical manifestations, often triggering acute and chronic pain syndromes that can be life-altering. These virally induced pain states can arise through direct viral replication within neurons, or indirectly, via immune responses to infection in both the contexts of afferent signaling in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) or subsequent higher order integration in intracranial systems. Varicella-zoster virus (VZV), influenza virus, and SARS-CoV-2 each provide a unique lens through which to examine the interplay between viral activity and pain. This perspective paper is not meant to be an exhaustive review of virally-induced neuropathic pain states. It seeks to explore curated aspects of the complexities of these pain states, identify research gaps, and suggest solutions using nanoscale molecular understanding and psychoneuroimmunological and biopsychosocial frameworks. Each subheading is accompanied by a list of related issues for study which we think will lead to advances in our understanding of the vexing pain phenotype associated with viral infection. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c622db6830f447f5bf2748866d52d012 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2673-561X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Pain Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-c622db6830f447f5bf2748866d52d0122025-01-30T13:44:30ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Pain Research2673-561X2025-01-01610.3389/fpain.2025.15271061527106Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directionsSara A. Dochnal0Steven P. Cohen1Mark R. Hutchinson2Mark R. Hutchinson3Mark R. Hutchinson4Yury I. Miller5Tony L. Yaksh6Department of Anesthesiology, University of California, San Diego, CA, United StatesDepartment of Anesthesiology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United StatesSchool of Biomedicine, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, AustraliaInstitute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, AustraliaDavies Livestock Research Centre, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, AustraliaDepartment of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, CA, United StatesDepartment of Anesthesiology, University of California, San Diego, CA, United StatesThe recent SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has underscored the significance of viral infections, affecting billions of lives and costing trillions of dollars globally. Even beyond SARS-CoV-2, common infections with viruses like influenza, HIV, and herpesviruses have profound impacts beyond their typical manifestations, often triggering acute and chronic pain syndromes that can be life-altering. These virally induced pain states can arise through direct viral replication within neurons, or indirectly, via immune responses to infection in both the contexts of afferent signaling in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) or subsequent higher order integration in intracranial systems. Varicella-zoster virus (VZV), influenza virus, and SARS-CoV-2 each provide a unique lens through which to examine the interplay between viral activity and pain. This perspective paper is not meant to be an exhaustive review of virally-induced neuropathic pain states. It seeks to explore curated aspects of the complexities of these pain states, identify research gaps, and suggest solutions using nanoscale molecular understanding and psychoneuroimmunological and biopsychosocial frameworks. Each subheading is accompanied by a list of related issues for study which we think will lead to advances in our understanding of the vexing pain phenotype associated with viral infection.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpain.2025.1527106/fullneuroimmune activationviral infectionpost-herpetic neuralgiaLong COVIDinfluenzaneurotropic infection and antiviral therapy |
| spellingShingle | Sara A. Dochnal Steven P. Cohen Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Mark R. Hutchinson Yury I. Miller Tony L. Yaksh Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions Frontiers in Pain Research neuroimmune activation viral infection post-herpetic neuralgia Long COVID influenza neurotropic infection and antiviral therapy |
| title | Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions |
| title_full | Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions |
| title_fullStr | Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions |
| title_short | Virally-initiated pain states: phenotypes, mechanisms, and future directions |
| title_sort | virally initiated pain states phenotypes mechanisms and future directions |
| topic | neuroimmune activation viral infection post-herpetic neuralgia Long COVID influenza neurotropic infection and antiviral therapy |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpain.2025.1527106/full |
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