Biological Functions of TRPV1

Transient receptor potential vanilloid subfamily member 1 (TRPV1), also known as capsaicin receptor (VR1), is a kind of ligand gated non-selective cation channel which can be activated by capsaicin, heat (>43 degrees C) and H+ (pH<6.0). TRPV1 is highly permeable to Ca2+. Previous studies found that TRPV1 mainly distributes in nervous system and mediates pruritus and pain response. Recent studies have shown that TRPV1 also widely distributes in non-nervous cells such as mast cells, bladder epithelial cells, monocytes, skin keratinized epithelial cells, islet cells and so on. TRPV1 has a wide range of functions and can mediate beneficial or harmful biological effects on the body. In the nervous system, TRPV1 related signal pathway mainly mediates itching and pain response. Relevant studies in pancreatic cells have shown that the upregulation of TRPV1 can alleviate the process of diabetes, but studies in pulmonary epithelial cells, pulmonary vascular endothelial cells, bronchial smooth muscle cells, etc. have shown that the upregulation of TRPV1 can accelerate the development of respiratory diseases. In addition, TRPV1 has dual effects of promotion or inhibition on the disease progression in cardiovascular system, digestive system and skin system. In cancer research, it was also found that the upregulation of TRPV1 played an important antineoplastic effect, which could inhibit the proliferation, invasion and migration of tumor cells in human tongue squamous cell carcinoma, prostate cancer, breast cancer and so on, arrest the cell cycle and induce cell apoptosis. At present, many studies have been carried out on the mechanism of TRPV1, among which the mechanism of TRPV1 mediating itching and pain is relatively in depth. TRPV1 has become a promising therapeutic target due to its extensive functions. New drugs targeted to TRPV1 have been developed to ameliorate diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and some kinds of cancers. This paper introduces the latest progress in the distribution, structural characteristics and functions of TRPV1, and focuses on the research progress of pruritus and pain related signaling pathways mediated by TRPV1. We also introduced the Chinese herbal medicine with TRPV1 as the target, looking forward to providing theoretical guidance for taking TRPV1 as a potential therapeutic target by combination of traditional Chinese medicine and modern medicine.