Pain Journal Club

Pain Journal Club meets on Thursdays from 12-1 PM via Zoom. Please email Cristina for link.

Next Meeting

April 30, 2026

Anna Kauffman, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"DNMT3a Downregulation Ttriggered Upregulation of GABA_A Receptor in the mPFC Promotes Paclitaxel‐Induced Pain and Anxiety in Male Mice"

May 7, 2026

Mohammed Alshagawi, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"Persistent interferon signaling causes sensory neuron plasticity and pain before and during arthritis"

Previous Meetings

April 2, 2026

Lucy Vulchanova, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Dept. of Neuroscience
"Parallel ascending spinal pathways for affective touch and pain"

November 6, 2025

Maria Makarova, CBS Undergraduate Student in Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development
"Surgical Incision Pain Induced an Increase in Alcohol Consumption in Mice"

October 30, 2025

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Chronic pain selectively reduces the motivation to work for remifentanil but not food reward"

October 23, 2025

Riddhi Kini, M.S., Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"TET1-Lipid Nanoparticle Encapsulating Morphine for Specific Targeting of Peripheral Nerve for Pain Alleviation"

September 25, 2025

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"The μ-opioid receptor differentiates two distinct human nociceptive populations relevant to clinical pain"

September 11, 2025

Cristina Peterson, PhD, Adjunct Associate Professor, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology
"Unrelieved pain and risk of opioid use disorder or overdose in older adults prescribed opioids"

September 4, 2025

Amanda Klein, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Buffalo
"Macrophages protect against sensory axon loss in peripheral neuropathy"

May 1, 2025

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"A cholinergic circuit that relieves pain despite opioid tolerance"

April 24, 2025

Riddhi Kini, M.S., Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Low-dose NSAIDs reduce pain via macrophage targeted nanoemulsion delivery to neuroinflammation of the sciatic nerve in rat"

April 17, 2025

Joe Ntayagabiri, B.A., MINDS Program student
"Precision spinal gene delivery-induced functional switch in nociceptive neurons reverses neuropathic pain"

March 27, 2025

Amanda Klein, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Buffalo
"Structure-guided design of a peripherally restricted chemogenetic system"

March 20, 2025

Mohammed Alshagawi, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"CRISPR Epigenome Editing of AKAP150 in DRG Neurons Abolishes Degenerative IVD-Induced Neuronal Activation"

March 6, 2025

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Enhanced analgesic cholinergic tone in the spinal cord in a mouse model of neuropathic pain"

February 27, 2025

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"NaHS modulates astrocytic EAAT2 expression to impact SNI-induced neuropathic pain and depressive-like behaviors"

February 20, 2025

Anna Kauffman, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Identification of Potential Intervention Targets Involved in Prior Exercise that Attenuates Peripheral Neuropathic Pain by Integrating Transcriptome and Whole-genome Bisulfite Sequencing Analyses"

February 13, 2025

Laura Stone, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Anesthesiology
"Discordance between preclinical and clinical testing of NaV1.7-selective inhibitors for pain"

February 6, 2025

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology
"Pharmacology and Mechanism of Action of Suzetrigine, a Potent and Selective NaV1.8 Pain Signal Inhibitor for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Pain"
"US drug agency approves potent painkiller — the first non-opioid in decades"

December 6, 2024

Peter Lee, Ph.D., Research Associate, Department of Anesthesiology
"Spatial, transcriptomic, and epigenomic analyses link dorsal horn neurons to chronic pain genetic predisposition"

November 21, 2024

Riddhi Kini, Pharmaceutics Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Sustained-Release Esketamine Based Nanoparticle-Hydrogel Delivery System for Neuropathic Pain Management"

November 14, 2024

Anna Kauffman, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Back pain exercise therapy remodels human epigenetic profiles in buccal and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells: an exploratory study in young male participants"

November 7, 2024

Rachel Thompson, Pre-Med student
"Effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation and Deep Breathing Exercise on Pain, Disability, and Sleep Among Patients With Chronic Tension-Type Headache"

October 24, 2024

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental & Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Neuropathic pain has sex-specific effects on oxycodone-seeking and non-drug-seeking ensemble neurons in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex of mice "

October 17, 2024

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Adolescent ethanol exposure promotes mechanical allodynia and alters dopamine transmission in the nucleus accumbens shell"

October 3, 2024

Mohammed Alshagawi, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"Intervertebral disc human nucleus pulposus cells associated with back pain trigger neurite outgrowth in vitro and pain behaviors in rats"

September 26, 2024

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. candidate
"Neural circuit basis of placebo pain relief"

September 19, 2024

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Morphine-responsive neurons that regulate mechanical antinociception"

September 12, 2024

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology
"Pain and Itch Processing in Aged Mice"

March 21, 2024

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Hypernegative GABAA Reversal Potential in Pyramidal Cells Contributes to Medial Prefrontal Cortex Deactivation in a Mouse Model of Neuropathic Pain"

February 29, 2024

Taylor Yeater, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Anesthesiology
"Somatosensory cortex and central amygdala regulate neuropathic pain-mediated peripheral immune response via vagal projections to the spleen"

February 22, 2024

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Mechanisms of CaMKII action in long-term potentiation"

February 15, 2024

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Nerve injury disrupts temporal processing in the spinal cord dorsal horn through alterations in PV+ interneurons"

February 8, 2024

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Time-dependent and selective microglia-mediated removal of spinal synapses in neuropathic pain "

February 1, 2024

Anna Kauffman, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Epigenetic regulation of beta-endorphin synthesis in hypothalamic arcuate nucleus neurons modulates neuropathic pain in a rodent pain model"

November 30, 2023

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Agmatine reduces alcohol drinking and produces antinociceptive effects in rodent models of alcohol use disorder"

November 9, 2023

Mohammed Alshagawi, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Decitabine attenuates nociceptive behavior in a murine model of bone cancer pain"

November 2, 2023

Anisha Adke, Medical Scientist Training Program (M.D./Ph.D.) student
"Disinhibition of Mesolimbic Dopamine Circuit by the Lateral Hypothalamus Regulates Pain Sensation"

October 26, 2023

Peter Lee, Ph.D., Research Associate, Department of Anesthesiology
"RNA profiling of human dorsal root ganglia reveals sex differences in mechanisms promoting neuropathic pain"

October 19, 2023

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Regulation of neuropathic pain by microglial Orai1 channels"

October 12, 2022

Anna Kauffman, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"IL-1 Mediates Chronic Stress-Induced Hyperalgesia Accompanied by Microglia and Astroglia Morphological Changes in Pain-Related Brain Regions in Mice"

October 5, 2023

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Contribution of µ opioid receptor-expressing dorsal horn interneurons to neuropathic pain-like behavior in mice"

September 28, 2023

Cristina Peterson, PhD, Adjunct Associate Professor, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology
"Human OPRM1 and murine Oprm1 promoter driven viral constructs for genetic access to mu-opioidergic cell types"

September 21, 2023

Shanda Hunt, MPH, Research Data Education and Outreach Librarian
Wanda Marsolek, MLIS, Data Curation Librarian, University of Minnesota Libraries
Shanda and Wanda, from the Data Repository of the University of Minnesota (DRUM), will provide instruction and guidance as to how to best utilize the repository an accordance with new data management requirements.

September 14, 2023

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"NMDA Receptors at Primary Afferent–Excitatory Neuron Synapses Differentially Sustain Chemotherapy- and Nerve Trauma-Induced Chronic Pain"

May 4, 2023

Mohammed Alshagawi, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Dietary polyphenols as a safe and novel intervention for modulating pain associated with intervertebral disc degeneration in an in-vivo rat model"

April 27, 2023

Anisha Adke, Medical Scientist Training Program (M.D./Ph.D.) student
"Anterior cingulate inputs to nucleus accumbens control the social transfer of pain and analgesia"

April 20, 2023

Laura Stone, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Anesthesiology
"Improving Preclinical Development of Novel Interventions to Treat Pain: Insanity Is Doing the Same Thing Over and Over and Expecting Different Results"

April 13, 2023

Kayla Devoll, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Neuropathic pain caused by miswiring and abnormal end organ targeting"

April 6, 2023

Karolina Bretova, Researcher, Department of Neuroscience
"Voluntary running‑induced activation of ventral hippocampal GABAergic interneurons contributes to exercise‑induced hypoalgesia in neuropathic pain model mice"

March 23, 2023

Katie Billings, APPE student, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Activation of the bile acid receptors TGR5 and FXR in the spinal dorsal horn alleviates neuropathic pain"

March 16, 2023

Allison MacLean, Lab Manager, Department of Anesthesiology
"Intraperitoneal 5-Azacytidine Alleviates Nerve Injury-Induced Pain in Rats by Modulating DNA Methylation"

March 3, 2023

Rachel Schorn, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. student
"Adolescent ethanol drinking promotes hyperalgesia, neuroinflammation and serotonergic deficits in mice that persist into adulthood"

February 23, 2023

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Structure-based discovery of nonopioid analgesics acting through the a2A-adrenergic receptor"

February 16, 2023

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. Candidate
"Precision spinal gene delivery-induced functional switch in nociceptive neurons reverses neuropathic pain"

February 9, 2023

Sara Woodie, APPE student, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Mitragynine (Kratom)-Induced Cognitive Impairments in Mice Resemble Δ9-THC and Morphine Effects: Reversal by Cannabinoid CB1 Receptor Antagonism"

February 2, 2023

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Research Associate, College of Pharmacy
"Cross-species transcriptomic atlas of dorsal root ganglia reveals species-specific programs for sensory function"

January 26, 2023

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"A spinal microglia population involved in remitting and relapsing neuropathic pain"

December 15, 2022

Ben Clements, Ph.D. Pharmaceutics
"Nociceptive Stimuli Activate the Hypothalamus–Habenula Circuit to Inhibit the Mesolimbic Reward System and Cocaine-Seeking Behaviors"

December 8, 2022

Amanda Klein, M.S., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Targeted ubiquitination of sensory neuron calcium channels reduces the development of neuropathic pain"

December 1, 2022

Lukas Caye, Graduate Program in Molecular Pharmacology Ph.D. student
"Electrophysiological properties of maxillary trigeminal Aβ-afferent neurons of rats"

November 10, 2022

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Sparcl1/Hevin drives pathological pain through spinal cord astrocyte and NMDA receptor signaling"

October 27, 2022

Kayla Johnson, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Benzo[b]thiophene-2-carboxamides as novel opioid receptor agonists with potent analgesic effect and reduced constipation"

October 20, 2022

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"The rostromedial tegmental nucleus: a key modulator of pain and opioid analgesia"

October 6, 2022

Peter Lee, Ph.D., Research Associate, Department of Anesthesiology
"Reversal of neuropathic pain is associated with corticostriatal functional reorganization after nerve repair in the spared nerve injury model"

September 29, 2022

Allison MacLean, Lab Manager, Department of Anesthesiology
"Persistent inflammatory pain is linked with anxiety-like behaviors, increased blood corticosterone, and reduced global DNA methylation in the rat amygdala"

August 25, 2022

Lucas Kosobuski, APPE student, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Oral Aspirin/ketamine versus oral ketamine for emergency department patients with acute musculoskeletal pain"

July 21, 2022

Emma Pero, APPE student, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Acute inflammatory response via neutrophil activation protects against the development of chronic pain"

July 14, 2022

Henry Oo, Undergraduate research student, Department of Neuroscience
"Touch and tactile neuropathic pain sensitivity are set by corticospinal projections"

June 23, 2022

Ryan McFarland, Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Antinociceptive, antiallodynic and antihyperalgesic effects of the 5-HT1A receptor selective agonist, NLX-112 in mouse models of pain"

May 5, 2022

Anne Neumann, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences
"Randomized clinical trial comparing buprenorphine/naloxone and methadone for the treatment of patients with failed back surgery syndrome and opioid addiction"

April 28, 2022

Alexis Doucette, Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Chronic Sleep Deprivation Blocks Voluntary Morphine Consumption but Not Conditioned Place Preference in Mice"

April 14, 2022

Viacheslav Viatchenko-Karpinski, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Peripheral ablation of type III adenylyl cyclase induces hyperalgesia and eliminates KOR-mediated analgesia in mice"

April 7, 2022

Kayla Johnson, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"G protein signaling-biased mu opioid receptor agonists that produce sustained G protein activation are noncompetitive agonists"

March 31, 2022

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Neuronal GRK2 regulates microglial activation and contributes to electroacupuncture analgesia on inflammatory pain in mice"

March 24, 2022

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Alterations in microbiome composition and metabolic byproducts drive behavioral and transcriptional responses to morphine"

March 17, 2022

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Positive allosteric modulation of the mu-opioid receptor produces analgesia with reduced side effects"

March 3, 2022

Parker Jones, Undergraduate student, Fairbanks Lab
"PI3Kγ/AKT Signaling in High Molecular Weight Hyaluronan (HMWH)-Induced Anti-Hyperalgesia and Reversal of Nociceptor Sensitization"

February 24, 2022

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Antagonism of the mu-delta opioid receptor heterodimer enhances opioid antinociception by activating Src and calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II signaling"

February 17, 2022

Alexander Noll, M.S., Researcher, Department of Anesthesiology
"Moderate to Severe Chronic Pain in Later Life: Risk and Resilience Factors for Recovery"

February 10, 2022

Ruth Quintana, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Glutamate-mediated astrocyte-to-neuron signalling in the rat dorsal horn"

December 9, 2021

Madison Waldron, Graduate Program in Neuroscience student, Stone Lab
"Low catechol-o-methyltransferase and stress potentiate functional pain and depressive behavior, especially in female mice"

November 18, 2021

Alexis Doucette, Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Fentanyl-induced hyperalgesia and analgesic tolerance in male rats: common underlying mechanisms and prevention by a polyamine deficient diet"

November 11, 2021

Kayla Johnson, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Sex and dose-dependent antinociceptive effects of the JNK (c-Jun N-terminal kinase) inhibitor SU 3327 are mediated by CB2 receptors in female, and CB1/CB2 receptors in male mice in an inflammatory pain model"

November 4, 2021

Amanda Klein, M.S., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"SUR1, newly expressed in astrocytes, mediates neuropathic pain in a mouse model of peripheral nerve injury"

October 28, 2021

Lukas Caye, CBS Undergraduate student, Wilcox/Fairbanks Lab
"Opioid-Mediated Astrocyte-Neuron Signaling in the Nucleus Accumbens"

October 21, 2021

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Morphine tolerance is attenuated in germfree mice and reversed by probiotics, implicating the role of gut microbiome"

October 14, 2021

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Spinoparabrachial projection neurons form distinct classes in the mouse dorsal horn"

June 10, 2021

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"A central mechanism of analgesia in mice and humans lacking the sodium channel NaV1.7"

June 3, 2021

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Reduced MC4R signaling alters nociceptive thresholds associated with red hair"

May 27, 2021

Kayla Johnson, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Comparison of morphine, oxycodone and the biased MOR agonist SR-17018 for tolerance and efficacy in mouse models of pain"

April 22, 2021

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Development of depression-like behavior and altered hippocampal neurogenesis in a mouse model of chronic neuropathic pain"

April 1, 2021

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"The dopamine D1–D2DR complex in the rat spinal cord promotes neuropathic pain by increasing neuronal excitability after chronic constriction injury"

March 18, 2021

Alexander Noll, M.S., Researcher, Department of Anesthesiology
"Toll-like receptor 4/nuclear factor-kappa B pathway is involved in radicular pain by encouraging spinal microglia activation and inflammatory response in a rat model of lumbar disc herniation"

March 4, 2021

Ruth Quintana, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Spinal astrocytes in superficial laminae gate brainstem descending control of mechanosensory hypersensitivity"

February 25, 2021

Amanda Klein, M.S., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Innocuous pressure sensation requires A-type afferents but not functional ΡΙΕΖΟ2 channels in humans"

February 18, 2021

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Morphine acts on spinal dynorphin neurons to cause itch through disinhibition"

February 4, 2021

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Anterior cingulate inputs to nucleus accumbens control the social transfer of pain and analgesia"

December 3, 2020

Scott Thompson, Ph.D., Research Associate, Department of Anesthesiology
"Brain and psychological determinants of placebo pill response in chronic pain patients"

November 19, 2020

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Substance P-expressing Neurons in the Superficial Dorsal Horn of the Mouse Spinal Cord: Insights into Their Functions and their Roles in Synaptic Circuits"

November 5, 2020

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Sortilin gates neurotensin and BDNF signaling to control peripheral neuropathic pain"

October 29, 2020

Ruth Quintana, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Imaging large-scale cellular activity in spinal cord of freely behaving mice"

October 22, 2020

Alonso Guedes, D.V.M., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Anesthesia, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences
"Chronic Morphine-Induced Changes in Signaling at the A(3) Adenosine Receptor Contribute to Morphine-Induced Hyperalgesia, Tolerance, and Withdrawal"

October 15, 2020

Iryna Khasabova, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor, Department of Diagnostic and Biological Sciences
"Neurotoxic Peptides from the venom of the giant Australian stinging tree"

October 1, 2020

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Prolonged Use of NMDAR Antagonist Develops Analgesic Tolerance in Neuropathic Pain via Nitric Oxide Reduction-Induced GABAergic Disinhibition"

September 24, 2020

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Intra‐articular AAV‐PHP.S mediated chemogenetic targeting of knee‐innervating dorsal root ganglion neurons alleviates inflammatory pain in mice"

September 17, 2020

Danny Bruce, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Activation of µ-δ opioid receptor heteromers inhibits neuropathic pain behavior in rodents"

August 27, 2020

Damian Shanks, Pharm.D. candidate, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Sustained-release buprenorphine induces acute opioid tolerance in the mouse"

August 20, 2020

Alexis Doucette, Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Morphine produces potent antinociception, sedation, and hypothermia in humanized mice expressing human mu-opioid receptor splice variants"

August 13, 2020

Kayla Johnson, M.S., Researcher, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"Chronic morphine induces cyclic adenosine monophosphate formation and hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel expression in the spinal cord of mice"

August 6, 2020

Cecilia Barajas, Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Graduate Program student
"The effect of gut microbiome on tolerance to morphine mediated antinociception in mice"

July 16, 2020

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Context-Dependent GluN2B-Selective Inhibitors of NMDA Receptor Function Are Neuroprotective with Minimal Side Effects"

May 14, 2020

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Enhancement of Opioid Antinociception by Nicotine"

May 7, 2020

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"A functional polymorphism in the ATP-Binding Cassette B1 transporter predicts pharmacologic response to combination of nortriptyline and morphine in neuropathic pain patients"

April 16, 2020

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Exploring the overlapping binding sites of ifenprodil and EVT-101 in GluN2B-containing NMDA receptors using novel chicken embryo forebrain cultures and molecular modeling"

April 9, 2020

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Plasticity in the Link between Pain-Transmitting and Pain-Modulating Systems in Acute and Persistent Inflammation"
Relevant review paper: "Parabrachial Complex: A Hub for Pain and Aversion"

April 2, 2020

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"N-methyl D-aspartate receptor subtype 2B antagonist, Ro 25-6981, attenuates neuropathic pain by inhibiting postsynaptic density 95 expression"

March 19, 2020

Robby Hughes, Pharmacology Graduate Program Master's student
"Mu and delta opioid receptors play opposite nociceptive and behavioural roles on nerve-injured mice"

March 5, 2020

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Comprehensive molecular pharmacology screening reveals potential new receptor interactions for clinically relevant opioids"

February 27, 2020

Amanda Klein, M.S., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Pharmaceutical Sciences
"TRESK background K+ channel deletion selectively uncovers enhanced mechanical and cold sensitivity"

February 13, 2020

Kelsey Pflepsen, Ph.D., Postdoctroal Associate, Department of Pharmaceutics
"Dorsal root ganglion macrophages contribute to both the initiation and persistence of neuropathic pain"

January 23, 2020

Tongzhen Xie, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Dynorphin and Enkephalin Opioid Peptides and Transcripts in Spinal Cord and Dorsal Root Ganglion During Peripheral Inflammatory Hyperalgesia and Allodynia"

January 16, 2020

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Preclinical Testing of Nalfurafine as an Opioid-sparing Adjuvant that Potentiates Analgesia by the Mu Opioid Receptor-targeting Agonist Morphine"

January 9, 2020

Alexander Noll, Pharmacology Master's student
"Mu-Opioid Receptor (MOR) Biased Agonists Induce Biphasic Dose-dependent Hyperalgesia and Analgesia, and Hyperalgesic Priming in the Rat"

December 19, 2019

Robert Hughes, Pharmacology Master's student
"Genetic behavioral screen identifies an orphan anti-opioid system"

December 5, 2019

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Neuropathic pain modeling and viral distribution"

November 21, 2019

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"A Novel Mu-Delta Opioid Agonist Demonstrates Enhanced Efficacy With Reduced Tolerance and Dependence in Mouse Neuropathic Pain Models"

November 14, 2019

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Dual and Opposing Functions of the Central Amygdala in the Modulation of Pain"

October 31, 2019

Ruth Quintana, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. student
"Role of CD38, a cyclic ADP-ribosylcyclase, in morphine antinociception and tolerance"

October 17, 2019

Preview of posters to be presented at the Society for Neuroscience 2019 meeting

October 10, 2019

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Open field and a behavior score in PNT model for neuropathic pain in pigs"

October 3, 2019

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"High-threshold primary afferent supply of spinal lamina X neurons"

September 26, 2019

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Acute Experimental Pain Responses in Methadone- and Buprenorphine/Naloxone-Maintained Patients Administered Additional Opioid or Gabapentin: A Double-Blind Crossover Pilot Study"

September 19, 2019

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Spinal DN-9, a peptidic multifunctional opioid/neuropeptide FF agonist produced potent nontolerance forming analgesia with limited side effects"

September 12, 2019

Ben Clements, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. student
"Experimental Colitis Enhances the Rate of Antinociceptive Tolerance to Morphine via Peripheral Opioid Receptors"

August 22, 2019

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"N-methyl-d-aspartate Receptors in the Prelimbic Cortex are Critical for the Maintenance of Neuropathic Pain"

August 15, 2019

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Chloride Dysregulation through Downregulation of KCC2 Mediates Neuropathic Pain in Both Sexes"

August 8, 2019

Rishi Sharma, Neuroscience undergraduate student
"DRG Voltage-Gated Sodium Channel 1.7 Is Upregulated in Paclitaxel-Induced Neuropathy in Rats and in Humans with Neuropathic Pain"

August 1, 2019

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Increased pain sensitivity and decreased opioid analgesia in T-cell-deficient mice and implications for sex differences"

July 25, 2019

Emer O'Mahony, Pharmaceutics summer student
"Neural stem cell transplantation inhibits glial cell proliferation and P2X receptor-mediated neuropathic pain in spinal cord injury rats"

July 18, 2019

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
"Pain-Induced Negative Affect is Mediated via Recruitment of the Nucleus Accumbens Kappa Opioid System"

July 11, 2019

Jazmine Grant, Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Program (LSSURP) student
"Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol attenuates oxycodone self-administration under extended access conditions"

June 27, 2019

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Loss of STEP61 couples disinhibition to N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor potentiation in rodent and human spinal pain processing"

June 20, 2019

Alex Strom, Medicinal Chemistry Graduate Program student
"The axonal motor neuropathy‐related HINT1 protein is a zinc‐ and calmodulin‐regulated cysteine SUMO protease"

June 13, 2019

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"APOLLO-2: A Randomized, Placebo and Active-Controlled Phase III Study Investigating Oliceridine (TRV130), a G Protein-Biased Ligand at the µ-Opioid Receptor, for Management of Moderate to Severe Acute Pain Following Abdominoplasty"

May 30, 2019

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"The Pain of Sleep Loss: A Brain Characterization in Humans"

May 23, 2019

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
"TRPV1 promotes opioid analgesia during inflammation"

May 9, 2019

Cecilia Barajas, student researcher
"D2-like receptor agonist synergizes the mu-opioid agonist spinal antinociception in nociceptive, inflammatory and neuropathic models of pain in the rat"

May 2, 2019

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Macrophage-Colony Stimulating Factor Derived from Injured Primary Afferent Induces Proliferation of Spinal Microglia and Neuropathic Pain in Rats"

April 25, 2019

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Control of mechanical pain hypersensitivity in mice through ligand-targeted photoablation of TrkBpositive sensory neurons"

April 18, 2019

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Comparison of force plate gait analysis and owner assessment of pain using the Canine Brief Pain Inventory in dogs with osteoarthritis"
"Agmatine for Pain Management in Dogs With Coxofemoral Joint Osteoarthritis: A Pilot Study"
"Lack of effectiveness of tramadol hydrochloride for the treatment of pain and joint dysfunction in dogs with chronic osteoarthritis"

April 11, 2019

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Primary Afferent-Derived BDNF Contributes Minimally to the Processing of Pain and Itch"

March 28, 2019

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Predicting inadequate postoperative pain management in depressed patients: A machine learning approach"

March 21, 2019

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Lack of antinociceptive cross-tolerance with co-administration of morphine and fentanyl into the periaqueductal gray of male Sprague-Dawley rats"

March 14, 2019

Cory Goracke-Postle, Ph.D., Director of Research, College of Pharmacy Office of the Associate Dean for Research
"An Overview: The Opioid Crisis and the Future of Addiction and Pain Therapeutics: Opportunities, Tools, and Technologies"

March 7, 2019

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Ketamine infusion for 96 hr after thoracotomy: Effects on acute and persistent pain"
"Expanding Role of NMDA Receptor Antagonists in the Management of Pain"

February 21, 2019

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
"A new painkiller nanomedicine to bypass the blood-brain barrier and the use of morphine"

February 14, 2019

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Dept. of Neuroscience Post-doctoral Associate
"NIH Workshop: Critical Evaluation of Animal Pain Models for Therapeutics Development"

January 17, 2019

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Synthesis and Evaluation of a Novel Bivalent Selective Antagonist for the Mu-Delta Opioid Receptor Heterodimer that Reduces Morphine Withdrawal in Mice"

December 6, 2018

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in the Mesolimbic Reward Circuitry Mediates Nociception in Chronic Neuropathic Pain"

November 29, 2018

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Pharmaceutics Ph.D. candidate
"Genetic loss of GluN2B in D1-expressing cell types enhances long-term cocaine reward and potentiation of thalamo-accumbens synapses"

November 16, 2018

Christina Larson, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Comparison of Burrowing and Stimuli-Evoked Pain Behaviors as End-Points in Rat Models of Inflammatory Pain and Peripheral Neuropathic Pain"

November 1, 2018

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
“Neuron activity-induced Wnt signaling upregulates expression of BDNF in the pain neural circuit”

October 25, 2018

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
“Structure-based discovery of opioid analgesics with reduced side effects”
“The novel μ‐opioid receptor agonist PZM21 depresses respiration and induces tolerance to antinociception”

October 18, 2018

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Dept. of Neuroscience Post-doctoral Associate
“Kappa Opioid Receptor Distribution and Function in Primary Afferents”

October 11, 2018

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
“Neural circuits for pain: Recent advances and current view”

October 4, 2018

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
“A bifunctional nociceptin and mu opioid receptor agonist is analgesic without opioid side effects in nonhuman primates”

August 23, 2018

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
"Ovine model of neuropathic pain for assessing mechanisms of spinal cord stimulation therapy via dorsal horn recordings, von Frey filaments, and gait analysis"

August 15, 2018

Jen Cook, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Angiotensin II triggers peripheral macrophage-to-sensory neuron redox crosstalk to elicit pain"

August 8, 2018

Christina Larson, Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program student
"Chronic sleep restriction increases pain sensitivity over time in a periaqueductal gray and nucleus accumbens dependent manner."

July 25, 2018

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Multiple sites and actions of gabapentin-induced relief of ongoing experimental neuropathic pain"

July 16, 2018

Cece Barajas, Life Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Program (LSSURP) student
"Synergistic Attenuation of Chronic Pain Using Mu Opioid and Cannabinoid Receptor 2 Agonists"

June 27, 2018

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Involvement of the VGF-derived peptide TLQP-62 in nerve injury-induced hypersensitivity and spinal neuroplasticity"

June 20, 2018

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Safety and efficacy of erenumab for preventive treatment of chronic migraine: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial"
"ARISE: A Phase 3 randomized trial of erenumab for episodic migraine"

June 13, 2018

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"NMDA Receptor Activation Underlies the Loss of Spinal Dorsal Horn Neurons and the Transition to Persistent Pain after Peripheral Nerve Injury"

June 6, 2018

Ben Clements, Pharmaceutics graduate student
"Neuropathic Pain Medication Use Does Not Alter Outcomes of Spinal Cord Stimulation for Lower Extremity Pain"
"Spinal Cord Stimulation for the Treatment of Chronic Pain Reduces Opioid Use and Results in Superior Clinical Outcomes When Used Without Opioids"

May 23, 2018

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. Candidate
"A Genetically Encoded Biosensor Reveals Location Bias of Opioid Drug Action"

May 9, 2018

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. cCandidate
"Trafficking of adeno-associated virus vectors across a model of the blood brain barrier; a comparative study of transcytosis and transduction using primary human brain endothelial cells"

May 2, 2018

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Ethanol Reversal of Oxycodone Tolerance in Dorsal Root Ganglia Neurons"

April 25, 2018

Cristina Peterson, Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Disruption of nNOS-NOS1AP protein-protein interactions suppresses neuropathic pain in mice"

April 18, 2018

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Efficacy of Sustained-Release Buprenorphine in an Experimental Laparotomy Model in Female Mice"

April 4, 2018

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Regulation of nociceptive glutamatergic signaling by presynaptic Kv3.4 channels in the rat spinal dorsal horn"

March 28, 2018

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Mechanistic Differences in Neuropathic Pain Modalities Revealed by Correlating Behavior with Global Expression Profiling"

March 21, 2018

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Peripheral neuropathic pain: a mechanism-related organizing principle based on sensory profiles"

March 14, 2018

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Identification of a selective small-molecule inhibitor of type 1 adenylyl cyclase activity with analgesic properties"

March 5, 2018

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"17beta-estradiol counteracts neuropathic pain: a behavioural, immunohistochemical, and proteomic investigation on sex related differences in mice"

February 26, 2018

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Peripherally restricted opioid combination therapy reduced pain behavior in mouse and pig"
"Agmatine reduction of neuropathic pain requires spinal NMDA receptors containing GluN2B subunits"
"Strategically Substituted Agmatine (SSA) Novel Compounds Alleviate Neuropathic Pain"

February 21, 2018

Marek Joukal, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Neuroscience visiting scholar
"Cellular reactions of the choroid plexus induced by peripheral nerve injury"

January 9, 2018

Reshma Gore, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Truncated TrkB.T1-Mediated Astrocyte Dysfunction Contributes to Impaired Motor Function and Neuropathic Pain after Spinal Cord Injury"

January 3, 2018

Harsha Verma, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Pharmaceutics
Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Engineered AAVs for efficient noninvasive gene delivery to the central and peripheral nervous systems"

November 1, 2017

Cristina Peterson, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"GluN2B N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor and excitatory amino acid transporter 3 are upregulated in primary sensory neurons after 7 days of morphine administration in rats: implication for opiate-induced hyperalgesia"

October 18, 2017

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Evaluation of Analgesia, Tolerance, and the Mechanism of Action of Morphine-6-O-Sulfate Across Multiple Pain Modalities in Sprague-Dawley Rats"

October 4, 2017

Alex Skorput, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Neuroscience
"Dorsal Horn Parvalbumin Neurons Are Gate-Keepers of Touch-Evoked Pain after Nerve Injury"

September 27, 2017

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Pharmacokinetics of Sustained-Release Analgesics in Mice"

September 19, 2017

Harsha Verma, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Pharmaceutics
"Primary sensory neuron-specific interference of TRPV1 signaling by adeno-associated virus-encoded TRPV1 peptide aptamer attenuates neuropathic pain"

September 12, 2017

Kelsey Pflepsen, Graduate Program in Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate
"Endogenous nitric oxide inhibits spinal NMDA receptor activity and pain hypersensitivity induced by nerve injury"

August 9, 2017

Christina Larson, D.V.M., Comparative and Molecular Biosciences Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"NKTR-181: A Novel Mu-Opioid Analgesic with Inherently Low Abuse Potential"

July 26, 2017

Danny Bruce, Pharmacology Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"Identification of a signaling cascade that maintains constitutive delta-opioid receptor incompetence in peripheral sensory neurons"

July 19, 2017

Kelsey Pflepsen, Pharmaceutics Graduate Program Ph.D. candidate
"AAV-mediated gene transfer to dorsal root ganglion"
"Adeno-associated virus vectors efficiently transduce mouse and rabbit sensory neurons coinfected with herpes simplex virus 1 following peripheral inoculation"

June 28, 2017