Research Focus:
Studies to determine how early pain experiences may sensitize children to pain later in life: We postulate that early and repeated exposure to endothelin-1, as occurs during a sickle cell episode, sensitizes the organism thus, producing greater pain responses upon subsequent exposure, and decreasing opioid analgesia. Understanding the mechanisms that underlie these changes will identify novel molecular targets for the treatment of pain during sickle cell episodes.
Studies to determine how fetal alcohol exposure alters pain and analgesia across the lifespan: With estimates of fetal alcohol exposure ranging from 1-10 in 1000 births it is important to assess whether alterations in pain processing are a part of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
Pre-clinical development of new therapies for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain: Neuropathic pain is often refractory to current therapies. Our laboratory is focused on pre-clinical development of a gene based strategy to over-express opioid receptors and their endogenous ligands as an alternative therapeutic approach to treat neuropathic pain. Additionally, biotechnology collaborations, we are testing novel new compounds for the treatment of neuropathic pain.
Recent publications:
- Zissen MH, Zhang G, McKelvy A, Propst JT, Kendig JJ, Sweitzer SM (2007). Tolerance, opioid-induced allodynia and withdrawal associated allodynia in infant and young rats. Neuroscience 144: 247-262.
- Velázquez KT, Mohammad H, Sweitzer SM. (2007) Protein kinase C in pain: involvement of multiple isoforms. Pharmacol Res. 55:578-89.
- McKelvy AD, Mark TR, Sweitzer SM (2007). Age- and sex-specific nociceptive response to endothelin-1. J Pain 8: 657-666
- Zhang G, Mohammad H, Peper BD, Raja S, Wilson SP, Sweitzer SM. Enhanced peripheral analgesia using virally mediated gene transfer of the mu opioid receptor in mice. Anesthesiology (in press).
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