NPR1 inhibitors: new drugs for itch treatment?

In this issue of Science Translational Medicine, Solinski et al. (2019) (1) reported that pharmacological blockade of natriuretic peptide receptor 1 (NPR1), a receptor of neuropeptide natriuretic polypeptide b (NPPB), expressed by a subpopulation of mouse and human spinal cord neurons, may be the key to alleviate chronic itching. Further, the authors have identified small-molecule human NPR1 antagonists which could suppress chronic itch in mice without inducing significant adverse side effects.