Journal Article

DZNE-2026-00977

http://join2-wiki.gsi.de/foswiki/pub/Main/Artwork/join2_logo100x88.png Deep FLASH-seq profiling of purified canine sensory neurons uncovers species-specific signatures relevant to pain and itch.

Ledesma Fernandez, P. ; Butler, B. ; Theis, H.DZNE* ; Paulusch, S.DZNE* ; De Domenico, E.DZNE* ; Weir, G. A. ; Bell, A. M.

2026
Lippincott Williams and Wilkins New York, NY [u.a.]

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Please use a persistent id in citations: doi:10.1097/j.pain.0000000000004102

Abstract: Naturally occurring pain and itch disorders in the domestic dog represent an important and underexploited opportunity for translational sensory neuroscience. These conditions largely mirror human disease, highlighting the need for detailed comparative understanding of canine somatosensory neurobiology. Here, we present a single-cell transcriptomic characterisation of the canine dorsal root ganglion (DRG), providing molecular insights into sensory neuron diversity in a species of direct veterinary and biomedical relevance. We develop a novel mechanical dissociation and fluorescence-activated cell sorting strategy enabling purification of intact whole neurons from adult canine DRG, followed by deep, full-length RNA sequencing using FLASH-seq. This approach yields high-quality transcriptional profiles with molecular depth analogous to deep neuronal profiling in human DRG, enabling resolution of neuronal identities and subtype-specific gene programs. Using these data, we identify canine sensory neuron clusters conforming to conserved principles of DRG molecular organization observed across species, including peptidergic and noncanonical peptidergic nociceptors, low-threshold mechanoreceptors, proprioceptors, and thermosensory populations. Cross-species comparisons with human and mouse DRG datasets reveal broad conservation of pain- and itch-relevant pathways and therapeutic targets, alongside biologically meaningful divergence. We further identify species-specific differences in subtype-restricted expression of the pharmacologically relevant receptors IL31RA and SSTR2 , which we validate using in situ hybridization and contextualize with human spatial transcriptomic data. Finally, we provide evidence that domestication-associated genes are nonrandomly enriched in specific sensory neurons, suggesting that evolutionary history may have shaped somatosensory function. These data represent a resource for comparative sensory neuroscience and inform translational interpretation of pain and itch therapeutics across species.

Keyword(s): Animals (MeSH) ; Dogs (MeSH) ; Pruritus: metabolism (MeSH) ; Pruritus: genetics (MeSH) ; Ganglia, Spinal: metabolism (MeSH) ; Ganglia, Spinal: cytology (MeSH) ; Sensory Receptor Cells: metabolism (MeSH) ; Species Specificity (MeSH) ; Pain: metabolism (MeSH) ; Pain: genetics (MeSH) ; Humans (MeSH) ; Transcriptome (MeSH) ; Gene Expression Profiling (MeSH) ; Canine ; Dorsal root ganglion ; FLASH-seq ; Itch ; Pain ; Single-cell

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Contributing Institute(s):

1. Clinical Single Cell Omics (CSCO) / Systems Medicine (AG Schultze)
2. Platform for Single Cell Genomics and Epigenomics (PRECISE)

Research Program(s):

1. 354 - Disease Prevention and Healthy Aging (POF4-354) (POF4-354)
2. 352 - Disease Mechanisms (POF4-352) (POF4-352)

Experiment(s):

1. Platform for Single Cell Genomics and Epigenomics at DZNE University of Bonn

Appears in the scientific report 2026

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Database coverage:
; BIOSIS Previews ; Biological Abstracts ; Clarivate Analytics Master Journal List ; Current Contents - Clinical Medicine ; Current Contents - Life Sciences ; Ebsco Academic Search ; Essential Science Indicators ; IF >= 5 ; JCR ; Nationallizenz ; SCOPUS ; Science Citation Index Expanded ; Web of Science Core Collection

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