Nociceptor-to-macrophage communication through CGRP/RAMP1 signaling drives endometriosis-associated pain and lesion growth in mice

Abstract

Endometriosis is a debilitating and painful gynecological inflammatory disease affecting up to 15% of women and transgender men. Current treatments are ineffective for a substantial proportion of patients, underscoring the need for additional therapies with long-term benefits. Nociceptors release neuropeptides, such as calcitonin gene–related peptide (CGRP), which are known to shape immunity through neuroimmune communication. Given the comorbidity between endometriosis and migraine and the integral role of immune cells and inflammation in endometriosis, we investigated the role of CGRP-mediated neuroimmune communication in endometriosis. Using samples from eight patients with endometriosis and a nonsurgical mouse model of the disease, we found that mouse and human endometriosis lesions contain both CGRP and its coreceptor, receptor activity modifying protein 1 (RAMP1). In mice, nociceptor ablation reduced pain, monocyte recruitment, and lesion size, suggesting that nociceptor activation and neuropeptide release contribute to endometriosis lesion growth and pain. Mechanistically, CGRP changed the phenotype of macrophages to a pro-endometriosis phenotype. CGRP-stimulated macrophages demonstrated impaired efferocytosis and supported increased endometrial cell growth in a RAMP1-dependent manner. Treatment of lesion-bearing mice with US Food and Drug Administration–approved drugs that block CGRP-RAMP1 signaling reduced mechanical hyperalgesia, spontaneous pain, and lesion size. Together, our data demonstrated the effectiveness and underlying cellular mechanisms of nonhormonal and nonopioid CGRP/RAMP1 blockade in a mouse model of endometriosis, suggesting that targeting this axis may lead to clinical benefit for patients with endometriosis.