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Various lines of published evidence have already demonstrated the impact of TRPV1 agonists on energetic metabolism through the stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). This study presents a trial investigating if stimulation of the two related sensory receptors TRPA1 and TRPM8 could also stimulate the SNS and impact the energetic metabolism of healthy subjects. The trial was designed to be double-blinded, randomized, cross-over, placebo-controlled with healthy subjects and the impact on the energetic metabolism and the autonomic nervous system (ANS) of cinnamaldehyde, capsaicin and a cooling flavor was measured during the 90 min after ingestion. Energy expenditure and substrate oxidation were measured by indirect calorimetry. An exploratory method to measure ANS activity was by facial thermography and power spectral analysis of heart rate variability using ECG was also used. Following cinnamaldehyde ingestion, energy expenditure was increased as compared to placebo. Furthermore, postprandial fat oxidation was maintained higher compared to placebo after cinnamaldehyde and capsaicin ingestion. Similar peripheral thermoregulation was observed after capsaicin and cinnamaldehyde ingestion. Unlike capsaicin, the dose of cinnamaldehyde was not judged to be sensorially ‘too intense’ by participants suggesting that Cinnamaldehyde would be a more tolerable solution to improve thermogenesis via spicy ingredients as compared to capsaicin.

Background Oropharyngeal dysphagia (OD) is a major gastrointestinal motility disorder that causes severe nutritional and respiratory complications in elderly and neurological patients. In an earlier study, we found that stimulation of pharyngeal sensory neurons by capsaicinoids acting on transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) improved the swallow response of dysphagic patients. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of piperine, a dual TRPV1/TRPA1 agonist, on the swallow response of dysphagic patients. Methods A videofluoroscopic study was performed to assess the signs of impaired safety and efficacy of swallow and the swallow response of 40 dysphagic patients while swallowing one series of nectar control boluses and two series of nectar boluses supplemented with piperine. Patients were randomized into two groups: one group received 150 μM piperine and the other group received 1 mM. Results Piperine improved the safety of swallow by: (a) reducing the prevalence of unsafe swallows by −34.48 % ( P  = 0.004) at 150 μM and −57.19 % ( P  < 0.001) at 1 mM, and the severity score of the penetration-aspiration scale from 3.25 ± 0.51 to 1.85 ± 0.27 ( P  = 0.003, 1 mM); and (b) shortening the time to laryngeal vestibule closure from 0.366 ± 0.024 to 0.270 ± 0.022 s with 150 μM piperine ( P  < 0.001) and from 0.380 ± 0.032 to 0.306 ± 0.028 s with 1 mM piperine ( P  < 0.05). Conclusions Supplementing the alimentary bolus with piperine speeds swallow response and strongly improves safety of swallow in patients with OD, with a maximal therapeutic effect at 1 mM. Our results suggest that activation of TRPV1/A1 in oropharyngeal sensory neurons is a very promising neurostimulation strategy for dysphagic patients.

Transient receptor potential mucolipin 1 (TRPML1) is a Ca 2+ -releasing cation channel that mediates the calcium signalling and homeostasis of lysosomes. Mutations in TRPML1 lead to mucolipidosis type IV, a severe lysosomal storage disorder. Here we report two electron cryo-microscopy structures of full-length human TRPML1: a 3.72-Å apo structure at pH 7.0 in the closed state, and a 3.49-Å agonist-bound structure at pH 6.0 in an open state. Several aromatic and hydrophobic residues in pore helix 1, helices S5 and S6, and helix S6 of a neighbouring subunit, form a hydrophobic cavity to house the agonist, suggesting a distinct agonist-binding site from that found in TRPV1, a TRP channel from a different subfamily. The opening of TRPML1 is associated with distinct dilations of its lower gate together with a slight structural movement of pore helix 1. Our work reveals the regulatory mechanism of TRPML channels, facilitates better understanding of TRP channel activation, and provides insights into the molecular basis of mucolipidosis type IV pathogenesis. Two structures of human transient receptor potential mucolipin 1 (TRPML1), in the closed and agonist-bound open states, have been resolved by electron cryo-microscopy. Closing in on ion channels Numerous ion channels sit in the membranes of intracellular organelles and are responsible for maintaining concentration gradients and ionic signalling. The transient receptor potential mucolipin (TRPML) channels are Ca( II )-releasing channels that are crucial to endolysosomal function. While TRPML channels regulate physiological processes including membrane trafficking and exocytosis, mutations of TRPML1 cause the lysosomal storage disorder mucolipidosis type IV. Three papers in this issue of Nature report the structure of TRPML channels by cryo-electron microscopy. Seok-Yong Lee and colleagues report the structure of TRPML3, while studies from teams led by Xiaochun Li and Youxing Jiang present the structure of TRPML1. Together, these studies reveal the open and closed states of the TRPML family, indicating the regulatory mechanisms of these channels. As with most TRP channels, TRPML can be gated by specific lipids, and these studies provide insights into substrate binding and channel activation.

The lysosomal calcium channel TRPML1, whose mutations cause the lysosomal storage disorder (LSD) mucolipidosis type IV (MLIV), contributes to upregulate autophagic genes by inducing the nuclear translocation of the transcription factor EB (TFEB). Here we show that TRPML1 activation also induces autophagic vesicle (AV) biogenesis through the generation of phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate (PI3P) and the recruitment of essential PI3P-binding proteins to the nascent phagophore in a TFEB-independent manner. Thus, TRPML1 activation of phagophore formation requires the calcium-dependent kinase CaMKKβ and AMPK, which increase the activation of ULK1 and VPS34 autophagic protein complexes. Consistently, cells from MLIV patients show a reduced recruitment of PI3P-binding proteins to the phagophore during autophagy induction, suggesting that altered AV biogenesis is part of the pathological features of this disease. Together, we show that TRPML1 is a multistep regulator of autophagy that may be targeted for therapeutic purposes to treat LSDs and other autophagic disorders. It was known that prolonged TRMPL1 activation induces TFEB translocation and upregulates autophagic gene regulation. Here, the authors show that acute TRMPL1 activation also induces autophagy through VPS34 and by lysosomal calcium release independent of TFEB.

Transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily V, member 1 (TRPV1) plays a key role in sensing environmental hazards and in enhanced pain sensation following inflammation. A considerable proportion of TRPV1-expressing cells also express transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily A, member 1 (TRPA1). There is evidence for a TRPV1-TRPA1 interaction that is predominantly calcium-dependent, and it has been suggested that the two proteins might form a heteromeric channel. Here, we constructed subunit concatemers to search for direct evidence for such an interaction. We found that a TRPV1::TRPV1 concatemer and TRPV1 formed channels with similar properties. A TRPV1::TRPA1 concatemer was responsive to TRPV1 agonists capsaicin, acidic pH and ethanol, but not to TRPA1 agonists. Isolated TRPV1 and TRPV1::TRPA1 imaged by atomic force microscopy (AFM) both had molecular volumes consistent with the formation of tetrameric channels. Antibodies decorated epitope tags on TRPV1 with a four-fold symmetry, as expected for a homotetramer. In contrast, pairs of antibodies decorated tags on TRPV1::TRPA1 predominantly at 180°, indicating the formation of a channel consisting of two TRPV1::TRPA1 concatemers arranged face to face. TRPV1::TRPA1 was sensitized by PKC activation and could be inhibited by a TRPV1 antagonist. TRPV1::TRPA1 was activated by heat and displayed a threshold and temperature coefficient similar to TRPV1. However, the channel formed by TRPV1::TRPA1 has only two binding sites for capsaicin and shows less total current and a smaller capsaicin-induced shift in voltage-dependent gating than TRPV1::TRPV1 or TRPV1. We conclude that the presence of TRPA1 exerts a functional inhibition on TRPV1.

The transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) channel is a nonselective cation channel belonging to the superfamily of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels. It is predominantly expressed in sensory neurons and serves as an irritant sensor for a plethora of electrophilic compounds. Recent studies suggest that TRPA1 is involved in pain, itch, and respiratory diseases, and TRPA1 antagonists have been actively pursued as therapeutic agents. Here, we review the recent progress, unsettled issues, and challenges in TRPA1 research and drug discovery.

Cigarette smoke (CS) inhalation causes an early inflammatory response in rodent airways by stimulating capsaicin-sensitive sensory neurons that express transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily V, member 1 (TRPV1) through an unknown mechanism that does not involve TRPV1. We hypothesized that 2 alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes present in CS, crotonaldehyde and acrolein, induce neurogenic inflammation by stimulating TRPA1, an excitatory ion channel coexpressed with TRPV1 on capsaicin-sensitive nociceptors. We found that CS aqueous extract (CSE), crotonaldehyde, and acrolein mobilized Ca2+ in cultured guinea pig jugular ganglia neurons and promoted contraction of isolated guinea pig bronchi. These responses were abolished by a TRPA1-selective antagonist and by the aldehyde scavenger glutathione but not by the TRPV1 antagonist capsazepine or by ROS scavengers. Treatment with CSE or aldehydes increased Ca2+ influx in TRPA1-transfected cells, but not in control HEK293 cells, and promoted neuropeptide release from isolated guinea pig airway tissue. Furthermore, the effect of CSE and aldehydes on Ca2+ influx in dorsal root ganglion neurons was abolished in TRPA1-deficient mice. These data identify alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes as the main causative agents in CS that via TRPA1 stimulation mediate airway neurogenic inflammation and suggest a role for TRPA1 in the pathogenesis of CS-induced diseases.

Oxidation products of the naturally occurring phospholipid 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphatidylcholine (PAPC), which are known as OxPAPC, accumulate in atherosclerotic lesions and at other sites of inflammation in conditions such as septic inflammation and acute lung injury to exert pro- or anti-inflammatory effects. It is currently unknown whether OxPAPC also contributes to inflammatory pain and peripheral neuronal excitability in these conditions. Here, we observed that OxPAPC dose-dependently and selectively activated human TRPA1 nociceptive ion channels expressed in HEK293 cells in vitro, without any effect on other TRP channels, including TRPV1, TRPV4 and TRPM8. OxPAPC agonist activity was dependent on essential cysteine and lysine residues within the N-terminus of the TRPA1 channel protein. OxPAPC activated calcium influx into a subset of mouse sensory neurons which were also sensitive to the TRPA1 agonist mustard oil. Neuronal OxPAPC responses were largely abolished in neurons isolated from TRPA1-deficient mice. Intraplantar injection of OxPAPC into the mouse hind paw induced acute pain and persistent mechanical hyperalgesia and this effect was attenuated by the TRPA1 inhibitor, HC-030031. More importantly, we found levels of OxPAPC to be significantly increased in inflamed tissue in a mouse model of chronic inflammatory pain, identified by the binding of an OxPAPC-specific antibody. These findings suggest that TRPA1 is a molecular target for OxPAPC and OxPAPC may contribute to chronic inflammatory pain through TRPA1 activation. Targeting against OxPAPC and TRPA1 signaling pathway may be promising in inflammatory pain treatment.

The nervous system senses peripheral damage through nociceptive neurons that transmit a pain signal. TRPA1 is a member of the Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) family of ion channels and is expressed in nociceptive neurons. TRPA1 is activated by a variety of noxious stimuli, including cold temperatures, pungent natural compounds, and environmental irritants. How such diverse stimuli activate TRPA1 is not known. We observed that most compounds known to activate TRPA1 are able to covalently bind cysteine residues. Here we use click chemistry to show that derivatives of two such compounds, mustard oil and cinnamaldehyde, covalently bind mouse TRPA1. Structurally unrelated cysteine-modifying agents such as iodoacetamide (IA) and (2-aminoethyl)methanethiosulphonate (MTSEA) also bind and activate TRPA1. We identified by mass spectrometry fourteen cytosolic TRPA1 cysteines labelled by IA, three of which are required for normal channel function. In excised patches, reactive compounds activated TRPA1 currents that were maintained at least 10 min after washout of the compound in calcium-free solutions. Finally, activation of TRPA1 by disulphide-bond-forming MTSEA is blocked by the reducing agent dithiothreitol (DTT). Collectively, our data indicate that covalent modification of reactive cysteines within TRPA1 can cause channel activation, rapidly signalling potential tissue damage through the pain pathway.

BackgroundBioactive dietary constituents activating Transient receptor potential (TRP) channels have emerged as promising candidates for the prevention of metabolic disorders.ObjectiveThe present study is an attempt to evaluate anti-obesity potential of a dietary TRP-based tri-agonist, combination of sub-effective doses of capsaicin (TRPV1 agonist), menthol (TRPM8 agonist), and cinnamaldehyde (TRPA1 agonist) in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice.DesignMale C57BL/6 J mice divided into three groups (n = 8), were fed on normal pellet diet (NPD), or high-fat diet (HFD) (60% energy by fat) and HFD + CB (combination of capsaicin 0.4 mg/Kg, menthol 20 mg/Kg, and cinnamaldehyde 2 mg/Kg; p.o) for 12 weeks. Effects on HFD-induced weight gain, biochemical, histological and genomic changes in the WAT, BAT, liver and hypothalamus tissues were studied.ResultsAdministration of tri-agonist prevented HFD-induced increase in weight gain, improved altered morphometric parameters, glucose homeostasis, and adipose tissue hypertrophy. Tri-agonist supplementation was found to induce browning of white adipose tissue and promote brown adipose tissue activation. Enhanced glucose utilization and prevention of lipid accumulation and insulin resistance in the liver was observed in mice supplemented with a tri-agonist.ConclusionThe present work provides evidence that the new approach based on combination of sub-effective doses of TRP channel agonists (TRI-AGONIST) can be employed to develop concept-based functional food for therapeutic and preventive strategies against HFD-associated pathological complications.