Neurons within the superficial dorsal horn (SDH) of the rodent spinal cord exhibit distinct firing properties during early life. While this may reflect a unique combination of voltage-gated Na(+) (Na(v)) and voltage-independent (i.e. "leak'') K(+) channels which strongly influence neuronal excitability across the CNS, surprisingly little is known about which genes encoding for Na(v) and leak K(+) channels are expressed within developing spinal pain circuits. The goal of the present study was therefore to characterize the transcriptional expression of these channels within the rat SDH at postnatal days (P) 3, 10, 21 or adulthood using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The results demonstrate that Na(v) isoforms are developmentally regulated at the mRNA level in a subtype-specific manner, as Na(v)1.2 and Na(v)1.3 decreased significantly from P3 to adulthood, while Na(v)1.1 was up-regulated during this period. The data also indicate selective, age-dependent changes in the mRNA expression of two-pore domain (K(2P)) K(+) channels, as TWIK-related acid-sensitive K(+) channels TASK-1 (KCNK3) and TASK-3 (KCNK9) were down-regulated during postnatal development in the absence of any changes in the tandem of pore domains in a weak inward rectifying K(+) channel (TWIK) isoforms examined (KCNK1 and KCNK6). In addition, a developmental shift occurred within the TREK subfamily due to decreased TREK-2 (KCNK10) mRNA within the mature SDH. Meanwhile, G-protein-coupled inward rectifying K(+) channels (K(ir)3.1 and K(ir)3.2) were expressed in the SDH at mature levels from birth. Overall, the results suggest that the transcription of ion channel genes occurs in a highly age-dependent manner within the SDH, raising the possibility that manipulating the expression or function of ion channels which are preferentially expressed within immature nociceptive networks could yield novel approaches to relieving pain in infants and children.