Biomedicines (Nov 2021)

Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway in Experimental Model of Fibromyalgia: Role of Hidrox<sup>®</sup>

  • Ramona D’Amico,
  • Marika Cordaro,
  • Rosalba Siracusa,
  • Daniela Impellizzeri,
  • Angela Trovato Salinaro,
  • Maria Scuto,
  • Maria Laura Ontario,
  • Roberto Crea,
  • Salvatore Cuzzocrea,
  • Rosanna Di Paola,
  • Roberta Fusco,
  • Vittorio Calabrese

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines9111683
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 11
p. 1683

Abstract

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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic condition characterized by persistent widespread pain that negatively affects the quality of life of patients. The WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway seems to be involved in central sensitization and different pain states. The objective of this study was to investigate the beneficial effects of a new compound called Hidrox® (HD), containing 40–50% hydroxytyrosol, in counteracting the pain associated with FM. An FM-like model was induced in rats by subcutaneous injections of reserpine (1 mg/kg) for three consecutive days. Later, HD (10 mg/kg) was administered orally to the animals for seven days. Reserpine injections induced WNT/β-catenin pathway activation, release of pro-inflammatory mediators as well as a significant increase in oxidative stress. Daily treatment with HD was able to modulate the WNT/β-catenin and Nrf2 pathways and consequently attenuate the behavioral deficits and microglia activation induced by reserpine injection. These results indicate that nutritional consumption of HD can be considered as a new therapeutic approach for human FM.

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