Editorial
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2018. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Pharmacology. Oct 22, 2018; 7(1): 1-9
Published online Oct 22, 2018. doi: 10.5497/wjp.v7.i1.1
Kv7 channels a potential therapeutic target in fibromyalgia: A hypothesis
Kim Lawson
Kim Lawson, Department of Biosciences and Chemistry, Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S1 1WB, United Kingdom
Author contributions: Lawson K researched the materials for the article and wrote the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There is no conflict of interest associated with the author for the contributions in this manuscript.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Kim Lawson, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Department of Biosciences and Chemistry, Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, City Campus, Howard Street, Sheffield S1 1WB, United Kingdom. k.lawson@shu.ac.uk
Telephone: +44-114-2253057 Fax: +44-114-2253066
Received: July 27, 2018
Peer-review started: July 29, 2018
First decision: September 3, 2018
Revised: September 5, 2018
Accepted: October 12, 2018
Article in press: October 13, 2018
Published online: October 22, 2018
Abstract

Fibromyalgia is characterized by the primary symptoms of persistent diffuse pain, fatigue, sleep disturbance and cognitive dysfunction. Persistent pain conditions, such as fibromyalgia, are often refractory to current available therapies. An involvement of K+ channels in the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia is emerging and supported by drug treatments for this condition exhibiting action at these molecular processes. K+ channels constitute potential novel target candidates for pain therapy offering peripheral and/or central actions. The Kv7 channel activators, flupirtine and retigabine, have exhibited pharmacological profiles compatible to the requirements needed for use as a therapeutic approach to fibromyalgia. Clinical trials to address the multidimensional challenges of fibromyalgia with flupirtine and retigabine will provide important insight to the role of K+ channels in this condition.

Keywords: Fibromyalgia, Persistent pain, Potassium channels, Kv7 channels, Flupirtine, Retigabine

Core tip: Fibromyalgia a multifaceted disorder remains a major unmet condition with current therapies providing limited control. An involvement of potassium channels in the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia and the related symptoms is emerging, and Kv7 channel activators, such as flupirtine and retigabine, exhibit pharmacological profiles compatible with the requirements of therapeutic approaches to fibromyalgia. Focused clinical trials with flupirtine and retigabine will provide important insight to the role of potassium channels and the utility of Kv7 channel activators in fibromyalgia.