Sodium Channel Expression in Human Teeth

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The human tooth pulp has many nerve fibers and is a common source of pain. This study examines nerve fibers within normal and painful samples and identifies changes that can contribute to the generation of pain.

Detailed Description
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The human tooth pulp is a rich source of pain fibers and is a common site of pathology that is often accompanied by spontaneous and stimulus-induced lingering pain. A common treatment modality includes the extraction of the offending tooth diagnosed with irreversible pulpitis. Extracted teeth represent an abundant source of normal and diseased human nociceptors and the evaluation of these tissues represents a powerful model to study human pain mechanisms since the character of pain, pain levels, and response to stimuli can be documented prior to extraction. The overall objective of this study is to correlate changes in the expression of Sodium Channels (NaCh) with clinical responses to hot and cold thermal stimuli, and the expression of the associated receptors/transducers responsible for receiving that stimulus in extracted teeth with severe and spontaneous pain. Teeth requiring extraction in the clinical setting will be used for this study. The research questions are: 1.) To evaluate quantitatively the overall NaCh and Nav 1.3, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8 1.9 isoform expressions in nerves of normal teeth as compared to diseased teeth 2.) To evaluate quantitatively hot/cold VR1 and CMR1 receptor expression in nerves of normal teeth as compared to the nerves in the modality-specific pain groups of diseased teeth 3.) To investigate the ultrastructural localization of NaCh isoforms in different fiber types and at sites that may be involved in pain generation.

Official Title
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Sodium Channel Expression in Human Teeth

Conditions
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Dental Pulp Disease

Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: individuals 16-80 years old normal third molar(wisdom)teeth painful, diseased teeth requiring extraction Exclusion Criteria: individuals under age 16 or above age 80 pregnant females prisoners nonvital painful teeth

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 16 Years
Maximum Age: 80 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Normal Teeth<br>Normal molar teeth | |
| painful teeth<br>Painful molar teeth | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Sodium Channel (NaCh) expression in nerves of normal teeth compared to diseased teeth. | Ex vivo lab bench study utilizing extracted human teeth. | Immediately following extration of the tooth. | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vanilloid receptor subtype-1 (VR1) and cold-and menthol-sensitive receptor-1(CMR1) expression in normal vs diseased teeth. | Ex vivo bench lab study utilizing extracted human teeth. | Immediately following extraction of tooth. | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Pain, Sodium Channel, Dental pulp