Topic: mechanical hypersensitivity

microRNAs (miRNAs) are small, non-coding RNAs involved in all processes in health and disease, including neuropathic pain and neuroregeneration. Upon peripheral nerve injury (PNI), dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons exhibit increased excitability and altered signaling, leading to dysregulation of their transcriptomic profiles indicative of neuropathic pain and axono-regenerative processes. The complexity of these neuronal responses makes distinguishing between the mechanisms involved in neuroregeneration and neuropathy highly challenging. To elucidate the role of miRNAs in these processes, we u

Painful diabetic neuropathy (pDN) is a serious, chronic complication affecting about 10-20% of diabetes mellitus (DM) patients, but the underlying cause remains unknown. Hints from risk factor assessment and literature point towards a role of oligodendrocyte and myelin homeostasis. Along this line, the main aim of the project is to identify adaptations occurring in the oligodendrocyte lineage due to the metabolic imbalances triggered by DM and determine which of these adaptations are crucial for the development of neuropathic pain. The high-fat high-sugar diet-induced type 2 DM mouse model is

Despite the pervasiveness of chronic pain worldwide, few effective strategies for long-term pain management exist. The development of new, non-addictive pain interventions hinges upon a deeper understanding of the changes in neural activity and circuitry that drive the development of chronic pain states. Recent studies have implicated the basolateral amygdala (BLA) as a critical hub in the encoding of negative valence to nociceptive information. Using immediate early gene mapping in combination with an activity-based rabies viral tracing screen, we identified several brain regions that synapse