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(Circulation Research. 2007;100:934.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Editorials

The Skinny on TRPV1

Donna L. Cioffi

From the Center for Lung Biology and Department of Pharmacology, University of South Alabama, Mobile.

Correspondence to Dr Donna L. Cioffi, University of South Alabama, MSB 3362, Dept. of Pharmacology, 307 N. University Blvd., Mobile, AL 36688. E-mail dlc302@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

See related article, pages 1063–1070

Key Words: TRPV1 • capsaicin • adipogenesis • obesity • microdomains

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

I’ve always wondered why my husband insists on growing hot peppers in the garden each year. Indeed if you pop 1 of these little bits of fire into your mouth the burning sensation that ensues is truly a memorable experience. But my husband always says that eating hot peppers is good for you. And indeed, he might be right. Hot peppers contain capsaicin, the chemical responsible for the "hot".^1,2 Capsaicin is used clinically for a number of indications including pain and itch relief and for some forms of rhinitis and headache.¹ It has also been implicated in playing a role in prevention of colon cancer and in antimicrobial actions against Helicobacter pylori.³ Capsaicin is a potent agonist for the TRPV1 calcium channel.^1,2 TRPV1 is perhaps best known as a "molecular integrator" of noxious or painful stimuli.⁴ However, physiological roles not associated with pain are now becoming evident for TRPV1. In this issue of Circulation Research, Zhang and colleagues present a novel, physiological role for the TRPV1 channel in the prevention of adipogenesis and obesity.⁵

Obesity is a major, global health concern. According to the World Health Organization,⁶ there were approximately 1.6 billion overweight adults in 2005, with at least 400 million obese people. The projections are even more staggering for the year 2015 with approximately 2.3 billion overweight adults and greater than 700 million obese people. Being overweight or obese increases the risk of developing numerous deleterious health conditions including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis, and reproductive problems.⁷ . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Related Article:

Activation of Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid Type-1 Channel Prevents Adipogenesis and Obesity

Li Li Zhang, Dao Yan Liu, Li Qun Ma, Zhi Dan Luo, Ting Bing Cao, Jian Zhong, Zhen Cheng Yan, Li Juan Wang, Zhi Gang Zhao, Shan Jun Zhu, Mark Schrader, Florian Thilo, Zhi Ming Zhu, and Martin Tepel
Circ. Res. 2007 100: 1063-1070. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]