C-C motif chemokine ligand 12 (CCL12) is a critical chemokine driving postoperative pain.

Abstract

The development of persistent postoperative pain remains a major clinical challenge, partly because of limited understanding of the molecular mediators driving inflammation and pain after surgery. The interaction between the nervous and immune systems plays a critical role in the initiation and maintenance of pain, but immune mediators in this process remain poorly characterized. Targeting cytokines and chemokines represents an attractive strategy to regulate inflammation in both the peripheral and central nervous systems and to modulate pain. Here, we demonstrated that the understudied chemokine C-C motif chemokine ligand 12 (CCL12) is significantly elevated in surgically incised skin. Administration of recombinant CCL12 induced dose-dependent mechanical and thermal hypersensitivity in naïve mice. C-C motif chemokine ligand 12 acted directly on nociceptors to increase calcium influx and neuronal excitability in dissociated dorsal root ganglia neurons. Notably, neutralization of CCL12 reduced pain behaviors and prevented the development of hyperalgesic priming. Surprisingly, CCL12 did not modulate the immune response to incision. These findings suggest that CCL12 is a key mediator of postoperative pain and highlights its potential as a therapeutic target for improving pain management after surgery.