Supraspinal Metabotropic Glutamate Receptors: An Endogenous Substrate for Alleviating Chronic Pain and Related Affective Disorders

Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) are key players in modulating excitatory transmission and important regulators of synaptic plasticity. mGluRs are G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that have been subdivided into three groups (mGluR1–mGluR8) based on sequence homology, intracellular pathways, and pharmacological profile. mGluRs are widely localized all along the nociceptive neuroaxis, including brain circuits controlling pain often overlapping those controlling affective/cognitive behaviors which prove deeply altered in several neurological disorders including chronic pain.