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A cell atlas for migraine research

The trigeminal nerve has a key role in migraine. An atlas of cell types and gene-expression profiles for cells in this nerve in mice and humans promises to improve our understanding of head pain.
  1. Philip R. Holland

    1. Philip R. Holland is in the Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE1 1UL, UK.

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  2. Peter J. Goadsby

    1. Peter J. Goadsby is in the Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE1 1UL, UK.

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Migraine is a leading cause of years lost to disability in adults under 50 years of age1. Symptoms (including moderate to severe head pain, vomiting, cognitive dysfunction and more) often affect an individual’s ability to participate in normal day-to-day activities. The trigeminal nerve is the main sensory nerve innervating the head, and has a key role in the pain of migraine and other headache disorders2. Writing in Neuron, Yang et al.3 describe gene-expression profiles for the trigeminal ganglion neurons that make up this nerve in mice and humans. Their cell atlas highlights common and divergent cell types and gene-expression patterns between the species, and will support drug discovery for migraine — a buoyant field of research.

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Nature 607, 39-40 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01479-4

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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