Fig. 1.

Effect of dexmedetomidine (Dex) on quantitative sensory testing in Townes mice. Data are shown as means±S.E.M. and down arrows indicate administration of dexmedetomidine or vehicle. The unit of measurement of current threshold is “Unit” (U), which corresponds to 100 times the amperage that elicited vocalization (one current threshold unit equates to 0.01 mAmperes). A. Townes sickle mice had significantly higher hot plate latencies at 30 and 60 min after dexmedetomidine (50 and 100 µg/kg combined) compared to vehicle injections (both P<0.001). B. Townes sickle mice had significantly lower 5 Hz current thresholds at 30 (P=0.004), but not at 60 min (P=0.1), after dexmedetomidine (50 and 100 µg/kg combined) compared to vehicle injections. C. Townes control mice also had significantly higher hot plate latencies at 30 and 60 min after dexmedetomidine (50 and 100 µg/kg combined) compared to vehicle injections (both P<0.001). D. Overall, Townes control mice had lower 5 Hz current thresholds over 30 and 60 min after dexmedetomidine (50 and 100 µg/kg combined) compared with vehicle P=0.016, an effect predominantly seen at the 50 µg/kg dose. P values indicate the effect of dexmedetomidine compared with vehicle at indicated time points. Dexmedetomidine injections, compared to vehicle (down arrows), were associated with smaller increases on hot plate latency in Townes sickle than in Townes control mice, P=0.003 for dose*time*genotype interaction (A and B)