Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark (FBL) is published by IMR Press from Volume 26 Issue 5 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.
Neuropathic pain is experienced as a result of disease or physical injury affecting the somatosensory system. It can be associated with abnormal sensations (dysesthesia) or evoked by normally nonpainful stimuli. Glia has emerged as key regulators of neuropathic pain perception and potential targets for drug development. Glia are activated upon peripheral nerve damage and secrete a number of proinflammatory factors. This process involves many mechanisms including neuroinflammation, ion channel activation, and ligand-receptor interactions. This review describes recent advances in the understanding of neuropathic pain, including the role of glia and their targeting by current treatment approaches.