This book is designed to focus on the role of Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide (CGRP) in health and disease. This peptide, originally discovered in the 1980s as a sensory neuropeptide with cardiovascular effects, is now known to play a distinct role in the pain processing of migraine. The various chapters address the origin, localization and function of CGRP and its receptor in the peripheral nervous system, in the cardiovascular system, and in other tissues and organs. Further attention is paid to the drug discovery pathway where recent findings show the beneficial effect of small molecule antagonists of the CGRP receptors for the relief of the migraine attack and of monoclonal antibodies against CGRP or the CGRP receptor for migraine prevention.

Inhalt

1. CGRP Discovery and Timeline.- 2. CGRP Receptor Biology: Is There More Than One Receptor?.- 3. The Structure of the CGRP and Related Receptors.- 4. CGRP Receptor Signalling Pathways.- 5. Pathways of CGRP Release from Primary Sensory Neurons.- 6. CGRP in Animal Models of Migraine.- 7. CGRP in Human Models of Migraine.- 8. Role of CGRP in Migraine.- 9. Understanding CGRP and Cardiovascular Risk.- 10. CGRP and Painful Pathologies other than Headache.- 11. Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide Antagonists and Therapeutic Antibodies.