Numerous exploratory, proof-of-concept and interventional studies have used histaminergic and non-histaminergic human models of itch. However, no reliability studies for such surrogate models have been conducted. This study investigated the test-retest reliability for the response to histamine- and cowhage- (5, 15, 25 spiculae) induced itch in healthy volunteers. Cowhage spiculae were individua...

Chronic itch is symptomatic of many skin conditions and systemic diseases. Little is known about pathophysiological alterations in itch-signaling neural pathways associated with chronic itch. We used a mouse model of hindpaw chronic dry skin itch to investigate properties of presumptive itch-signaling neurons. Neurons in the lumbar superficial dorsal horn ipsilateral to hindpaw dry skin treatme...

background & aims: prevalence of uremic itch is 30% in patients on dialysis, and routine treatments are often ineffective.   materials & methods: we selected 40 hd patients and prescribed 100 mg gabapentin after each hd session for 20, and prescribe placebo for the other 20 patients. initial dose of gabapentin was 100mg after every thrice-weekly hd and altered the administered dose in the base ...

Itch is known to be associated with psychological factors in adults, but has not been explored among adolescents. A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based population study involving adolescents born mostly in 1986 was carried out in 2004. A total of 4744 individuals were invited and the participation rate was 80%. The Hopkins Symptom Checklist-10 was used to measure mental distress. The prevalenc...

Pancreatic cancer is one of the major malignancies and cause for mortality across the world, with recurrence and metastatic progression remaining the single largest cause of pancreatic cancer mortality. Hence it is imperative to develop novel biomarkers of pancreatic cancer prognosis. The E3 ubiquitin ligase ITCH has been previously reported to inhibit the tumor suppressive Hippo signaling by s...

CTLA-4 (CD152) is a regulatory molecule in the immune system fundamentally important for the inhibition of T cell activity that is mediated by an unknown mechanism. Here we demonstrate similarities of CTLA-4 and Itch deficient mice and that CTLA-4 deficient T cells show a massive reduction in the overall ubiquitination of proteins. CTLA-4-mediated signal transduction leads to increased de-phosp...

Pruritus is one of the most debilitating symptoms for patients with epidermolysis bullosa (EB). This study aimed to assess burden itch and address its dimensions across EB. Forty-six EB were recruited from Saudi registry participate. All participants completed Leuven Itch Scale. The sample included 5 simplex (EBS), 3 junctional (JEB), 34 dystrophic (DEB), 4 had unknown type. Overall, 97.8% repo...

OBJECTIVE Lowered threshold of neurons (ie, neuronal sensitization) in atopic dermatitis was investigated by testing sensitivity to histamine. DESIGN Comparative study. SETTING A dermatological clinic and a research laboratory. PARTICIPANTS Eighteen patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) and 6 patients with chronic plaque-type psoriasis as well as 14 healthy control subjects. INTERVENTION...

Classically activated macrophages (M1) secrete proinflammatory cytokine and are predominant in obese adipose tissue. M2 macrophages, prevalent in lean adipose tissue, are induced by IL-13 and IL-4, mainly secreted by Th2 lymphocytes, and produce the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. ITCH is a ubiquitously expressed E3 ubiquitin ligase involved in T-cell differentiation and in a wide range of in...

What are the symptoms of swimmer’s itch? Symptoms of swimmer’s itch can be felt soon after swimming. You will first feel a tingling, itching or burning sensation. Within twelve hours of swimming, red bumps appear on the skin which may turn into blisters or a larger rash. The greater number of exposures to contaminated water, the more intense and immediate symptoms of swimmer’s itch will be. The...