neurobiology pain science

The brain and peripheral nervous system provide oversight to muscle physiology and metabolism. Muscle is the largest organ in the body and critical for glucose sensitivity, prevention of diabetes, and control of obesity. The central nervous system produces endocannabinoids (eCBs) that play a role in brain neurobiology, such as inflammation and pain. Interestingly, studies in humans and rodents show that a moderate duration of exercise increases eCBs in the brain and blood and influences cannabinoid receptors...

Early life adversity (ELA) tends to accelerate neurobiological ageing, which, in turn, is thought to heighten vulnerability to both major depressive disorder (MDD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). The two conditions are putatively related, with MDD representing either a risk factor or early symptom of AD. Given the substantial environmental susceptibility of both disorders, timely identification of their neurocognitive markers could facilitate interventions to prevent clinical onset. To this end, we analysed multimodal data from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study (ages 9-10 years)...

This review summarizes major findings and recent advances in magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) of migraine. A multi database search of PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science was performed with variations of magnetic resonance spectroscopy and headache until 20th September 2021. The search generated 2897 studies, 676 which were duplicates and 1836 were not related to headache. Of the remaining 385 studies examined, further exclusions for not migraine (n = 114), and not MRS of human brain (n = 128), and non-original contributions (n = 51) or conferences (n = 24) or case studies (n = 11) or non-English (n = 3), were applied...

OBJECTIVE: To critically appraise the evidence for and against premonitory symptoms in migraine being due to hypothalamic dysfunction. DISCUSSION: Some premonitory symptoms (e.g. fatigue, mood changes, yawning, and food craving) are associated with the physiologic effects of neurotransmitters such as orexins, neuropeptide Y, and dopamine; all of which are expressed in hypothalamic neurons. In rodents, electrophysiologic recordings have shown that these neurotransmitters modulate nociceptive transmission at the level of second-order neurons in the trigeminocervical complex (TCC)...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most common mood disorders worldwide. A lack of understanding of the exact neurobiological mechanisms of depression complicates the search for new effective drugs. Animal models are an important tool in the search for new approaches to the treatment of this disorder. All animal models of depression have certain advantages and disadvantages. We often hear that the main drawback of the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model of depression is its poor reproducibility, but rarely does anyone try to find the real causes and sources of such poor reproducibility...

One of the most controversial aspects of the use of animals in science is the production of pain. Pain is a central ethical concern. The activation of neural pathways involved in the pain response has physiological, endocrine, and behavioral consequences, that can affect both the health and welfare of the animals, as well as the validity of research. The strategy to prevent these consequences requires understanding of the nociception process, pain itself, and how assessment can be performed using validated, non-invasive methods...

AIMS: The vagus nerve provides an important route to the central nervous system, and its brain projections are involved in nociceptive control and pain perception. We investigated the effect of ABVN stimulation on the inhibition of nociceptive signaling and the role of the cholinergic system in its neurobiological effects in models of visceral-somatic pain in rats, as well as the potential difference in stimulus laterality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male and female Wistar rats were pretreated with auricular acupuncture in the ABVN and submitted to the visceral-somatic nociception model by acetic acid or somatic nociception by formalin...

BACKGROUND: Drug addiction is a chronic biochemical drug use disorder that affects the human brain and behaviour, and leads to an uncontrollable use of a licit or illicit drug. Drug addiction can commence, usually in the young, with the use of a non-medical or a recreational drug in social gatherings, which becomes more frequent over a period of time. It is associated with incremental doses of the drug in order to achieve a state of euphoria. Addiction to drugs has been identified as a relevant social and health problem presenting a risk to public health, especially with regards to communicable diseases (e...

BACKGROUND: As a traditional Chinese therapy, acupuncture is proposed worldwide as a treatment for pain and other health problems, but the findings of acupuncture analgesia have been inconsistent due to its variable modalities of therapeutic intervention. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the existing animal studies for evidence of acupuncture and its association of glia with reduction in pain conditions. METHODS: Literature searches were performed in four English and Chinese-language databases (Web of Science, PubMed, EMBASE and CNKI) on the 8th of October 2021...

Modulation of nociception allows animals to optimize chances of survival by adapting their behaviour in different contexts. In mammals, this is executed by neurons from the brain and is referred to as the descending control of nociception. Whether insects have such control, or the neural circuits allowing it, has rarely been explored. Based on behavioural, neuroscientific and molecular evidence, we argue that insects probably have descending controls for nociception. Behavioural work shows that insects can modulate nocifensive behaviour...

The prevalence of peripheral neuropathy is high in diabetic and overweight populations. Chronic neuropathic pain, a symptom of peripheral neuropathy, is a major disabling symptom that leads to a poor quality of life. Glucose management for diabetic and prediabetic individuals often fail to reduce or improve pain symptoms, therefore, exploring other mechanisms is necessary to identify effective treatments. A large body of evidence suggest that lipid signaling may be a viable target for management of peripheral neuropathy in obese individuals...

Low back pain (LBP) is a globally prevalent and costly societal problem with multifactorial etiologies and incompletely understood pathophysiological mechanisms. To address such shortcomings regarding the role of neurotrophins in the underlying mechanisms of pain, an LBP model was developed in rats involving two unilateral intramuscular injections of nerve growth factor (NGF) into deep trunk muscles. To date, behavioral investigations of this NGF-LBP model have been limited, especially as it pertains to female pain behaviors...

The brain and peripheral nervous system provide oversight to muscle physiology and metabolism. Muscle is the largest organ in the body and critical for glucose sensitivity, prevention of diabetes, and control of obesity. The central nervous system produces endocannabinoids (eCBs) that play a role in brain neurobiology, such as inflammation and pain. Interestingly, studies in humans and rodents show that a moderate duration of exercise increases eCBs in the brain and blood and influences cannabinoid receptors...

The use of low doses of psychedelic substances (microdosing) is attracting increasing interest. This systematic review summarises all empirical microdosing research to date, including a set of infrequently cited studies that took place prior to prohibition. Specifically, we reviewed 44 studies published between 1955 and 2021, and summarised reported effects across six categories: mood and mental health; wellbeing and attitude; cognition and creativity; personality; changes in conscious state; and neurobiology and physiology...

The placebo effect can be defined as the improvement of symptoms in a patient after the administration of an innocuous substance in a context that induces expectations regarding its effects. During recent years, it has been discovered that the placebo response not only has neurobiological functions on analgesia, but that it is also capable of generating effects on the immune and endocrine systems. The possible integration of changes in different systems of the organism could favor the well-being of the individuals and go hand in hand with conventional treatment for multiple diseases...

Biomechanical explanations for musculoskeletal pain are abundant and have been used for many years; however, researchers and clinicians are moving toward neuroscience-based explanations to study and explain them. This article discusses some specific mechanisms, commonly used in pain medicine, and their somewhat less specific but equally important role in nonpharmacological management of musculoskeletal pain. The article also explains the role of different receptors and how they relate to clinical conditions...

This first article in the JOSPT "Pain Science in Practice" series explains fundamental concepts related to neuroscience: transduction, transmission, modulation, and perception. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2022;52(4):163-165. doi:10.2519/jospt.2022.10995 .

Euthymia is a trans-diagnostic construct characterized by lack of mood disturbances; presence of positive affect; balance of psychological well-being dimensions, flexibility, consistency, and resistance to stress. The aim of this critical review is to draw a conceptual map of euthymia. Relationships with other constructs, continuum between euthymia and dysthymia with discomfort as an intermediate area, associations with lifestyle, clinimetric assessment, role of psychotherapeutic interventions, establishment of therapeutic targets, and neurobiological mechanisms are discussed...

Pain is a common symptom of an illness. For decades, pain treatments such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, opioids, and surgical nerve blocking have been widely used, but each method has its limitations. Photobiomodulation is a recently developed method for pain management, with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) being a more recent development used in pain management because of their low cost, low side effects, and high safety. Here, we reviewed the phototherapeutic effects of LEDs on different pain conditions...

Migraine is a hereditary disease, usually one-sided, sometimes bilateral. It is characterized by moderate to severe pain, which worsens with physical activity and may be associated with nausea and vomiting, may be accompanied by photophobia and phonophobia. The disorder can occur at any time of the day and can last from 4 to 72 h, with and without aura. The pathogenic mechanism is unclear, but extensive preclinical and clinical studies are ongoing. According to electrophysiology and imaging studies, many brain areas are involved, such as cerebral cortex, thalamus, hypothalamus, and brainstem...