CHARACTERIZING AND CULTIVATING CHROMAFFIN
CELLS FOR GRAFTING
Jacqueline Sagen, PhD • Brian R. Noga, PhD • Mary J. Eaton, PhD

Central “dysesthetic” pain following SCI is often described as a burning, piercing or radiating sensation. Such pain can severely compromise a person’s quality of life when it cannot be alleviated by conventional treatments. Laboratory research has shown that implanting adrenal medulla chromaffin cells at the surface of the spinal cord can alleviate many symptoms of chronic pain.

Miami Project researchers are studying chromaffin cell transplants to determine the mechanism by which these cells exert their analgesic effect. Although chemical and behavioral studies have identified some of the processes, until now there had been no neurophysiological studies demonstrating how the transplants effect the transmission of pain messages. Drs. Sagen, Noga, and Eaton designed an experiment to evaluate the effect that substances released by chromaffin cells have on the activation of nerve pathways. They found that the transplants block a specific part of the pain pathway while having no effect on non-pain pathways.

Obtaining an adequate number of primary cells for future human chromaffin cell transplants is a challenge because it may require adrenal tissue from several organ donors. To overcome this limitation, Dr. Mary Eaton proposes the use of chromaffin cell lines rather than primary chromaffin cells. She utilizes genetic engineering techniques to create an immortalized cell line, that is, chromaffin cells with the affinity to reproduce themselves. In testing these cells in animal experiments, Dr. Eaton and colleagues found that they can effectively reverse chronic pain. With further study, the clinical use of chromaffin cell lines may prove to be a novel approach for future pain management in people with SCI.