4 ms·

Study in mice explains how brain can turn pain signals up or down

46 points by laurex 7y ago

kick 7y ago
This is really cool! The “switch” acts more like a “pain rheostat,” similar to a home thermostat that modulates temperature — the pain rheostat reacts to pain signals to modulate pain sensations. In the mice, researchers found that activity in neurons that express protein kinase C-delta (CeA-PKCδ) turned up the pain rheostat and demonstrated an increase in pain-related responses. Conversely, researchers found that activity in neurons that express somatostatin (CeA-Som) turned down the pain rheostat, inhibiting nociception or the chain of activity in the nerves required to communicate pain. During the experiments, researchers were able to take advantage of molecular genetic approaches that allow them to fluorescently label and manipulate the activity of these two central amygdala cell types. They found that when they blocked CeA-PKCδ neurons, pain activity decreased. When researchers activated CeA-Som neurons, they observed a marked analgesic response in mice. Do these findings have any immediate practical benefit for humans?
- shakna 7y ago
  > Do these findings have any immediate practical benefit for humans? Immediate? Probably not. Practical? Probably yes. There are quite a number of not-fully-understood chronic pain conditions out there. This likely offers some alternative approaches that may lead to more treatments, or even possible cures.
  - noir_lord 7y ago
    Neuropathic pain is an utter bastard to treat. There are medications that are effective - gabapentin and pregablin (for some lucky people, me been one of them) but for others they aren't, Opiates don't do much neither do OTC painkillers - There is some evidence that Tramadol can help. I'm glad we are continuing to make breakthroughs in the field even if it's a decade or two before they may show up, pain is an incredibly useful notification that something may be wrong except when the thing that is wrong the notification system as a whole. I can cycle 60 miles, work all day etc but some days if someone steps on my foot I could drop them on the spot.
nobrains 7y ago
Edit: Deleted
- ggggtez 7y ago
  Presumably: wait a few years for this to turn into a drug. But more practically: talk to your doctor? Why would you ask a tech news site for medical advice?
tudorw 7y ago
I'm interested in the role of genetics in pain experience, it's interesting to see studies looking at the role of CYP2D6 in the amygdala, I look forward to more research in this area.
- karlh 7y ago
  Just as interesting is the role of culture on pain experience. I believe I recall a study some years ago that showed differences in pain experience across different countries/cultures. Immigrants to a new culture continued to show response patterns consistent with culture of origin. Their offspring responded more like the new culture and more so over several generations. I wish I could recall the research but it's been a while. Pain, especially chronic pain (which is very different from acute pain) often presents very similarly to an anxiety disorder.
Funes- 7y ago
>We know that pain is not static and that it can be modulated by several factors. Early research showed that the central amygdala, long known for its role in processing fear, can dial up pain signals. Interesting. A couple of days ago I was washing dishes and the water was too hot, so I almost burnt my hand--or so I thought--by putting it directly under the faucet by accident. Nonetheless, I started playing with it for a while: how long could I keep it there? I realized that if I put my hand under it, whenever I gave in to fear, the pain got unbearable, as if a switch had been turned on. I think that's why expert meditators can handle pain better. Also, meditation and yoga reduce the right amygdala's volume [0], which processes fear and negative emotions. [0] https://www.psypost.org/2019/08/meditation-and-yoga-practice-linked-to-reduced-volume-in-brain-region-tied-to-negative-emotions-54273 https://www.psypost.org/2019/08/meditation-and-yoga-practice....
- ben_w 7y ago
  I have another anecdote about pain. A few years ago, cycling at night on the then-under-construction path by the Cambridge Guided Busway, I bounced off an invisible kerb and noticed the “pain” from the fall before I hit the ground, when I was still at a ~45 degree angle; yet when I then picked myself up and cycled on to the cinema I felt no pain — even though, when I checked myself at the end of the film (one of the Hobbit films), I found I’d been bleeding enough to make quite a mess.
  - mikk14 7y ago
    It is pretty common under situation of physical effort not to feel pain, which makes some sort of evolutionary sense. Another anecdote: during last year's Tour de France, halfway climbing the Alpe d'Huez (~13.8km at avg 8% slope, nothing to scoff at), Vincenzo Nibali got knocked off his bike because it got hooked on a supporter's camera strap. He got back on his bike and completed the rest of the climb faster than the top contenders in front of him. When the doctors checked him, it turned out he had a fractured vertebra. I suppose that must've hurt.
- Giornito 7y ago
  I wonder if there is an increase or decrease in risk taking activities in relation to people that meditate or do yoga often.

46 points by laurex 7y ago

kick 7y ago

This is really cool! The “switch” acts more like a “pain rheostat,” similar to a home thermostat that modulates temperature — the pain rheostat reacts to pain signals to modulate pain sensations. In the mice, researchers found that activity in neurons that express protein kinase C-delta (CeA-PKCδ) turned up the pain rheostat and demonstrated an increase in pain-related responses. Conversely, researchers found that activity in neurons that express somatostatin (CeA-Som) turned down the pain rheostat, inhibiting nociception or the chain of activity in the nerves required to communicate pain. During the experiments, researchers were able to take advantage of molecular genetic approaches that allow them to fluorescently label and manipulate the activity of these two central amygdala cell types. They found that when they blocked CeA-PKCδ neurons, pain activity decreased. When researchers activated CeA-Som neurons, they observed a marked analgesic response in mice. Do these findings have any immediate practical benefit for humans?

shakna 7y ago
> Do these findings have any immediate practical benefit for humans? Immediate? Probably not. Practical? Probably yes. There are quite a number of not-fully-understood chronic pain conditions out there. This likely offers some alternative approaches that may lead to more treatments, or even possible cures.
- noir_lord 7y ago
  Neuropathic pain is an utter bastard to treat. There are medications that are effective - gabapentin and pregablin (for some lucky people, me been one of them) but for others they aren't, Opiates don't do much neither do OTC painkillers - There is some evidence that Tramadol can help. I'm glad we are continuing to make breakthroughs in the field even if it's a decade or two before they may show up, pain is an incredibly useful notification that something may be wrong except when the thing that is wrong the notification system as a whole. I can cycle 60 miles, work all day etc but some days if someone steps on my foot I could drop them on the spot.

nobrains 7y ago

Edit: Deleted

ggggtez 7y ago
Presumably: wait a few years for this to turn into a drug. But more practically: talk to your doctor? Why would you ask a tech news site for medical advice?

tudorw 7y ago

I'm interested in the role of genetics in pain experience, it's interesting to see studies looking at the role of CYP2D6 in the amygdala, I look forward to more research in this area.

karlh 7y ago
Just as interesting is the role of culture on pain experience. I believe I recall a study some years ago that showed differences in pain experience across different countries/cultures. Immigrants to a new culture continued to show response patterns consistent with culture of origin. Their offspring responded more like the new culture and more so over several generations. I wish I could recall the research but it's been a while. Pain, especially chronic pain (which is very different from acute pain) often presents very similarly to an anxiety disorder.

Funes- 7y ago

>We know that pain is not static and that it can be modulated by several factors. Early research showed that the central amygdala, long known for its role in processing fear, can dial up pain signals. Interesting. A couple of days ago I was washing dishes and the water was too hot, so I almost burnt my hand--or so I thought--by putting it directly under the faucet by accident. Nonetheless, I started playing with it for a while: how long could I keep it there? I realized that if I put my hand under it, whenever I gave in to fear, the pain got unbearable, as if a switch had been turned on. I think that's why expert meditators can handle pain better. Also, meditation and yoga reduce the right amygdala's volume [0], which processes fear and negative emotions. [0] https://www.psypost.org/2019/08/meditation-and-yoga-practice-linked-to-reduced-volume-in-brain-region-tied-to-negative-emotions-54273 https://www.psypost.org/2019/08/meditation-and-yoga-practice....

ben_w 7y ago
I have another anecdote about pain. A few years ago, cycling at night on the then-under-construction path by the Cambridge Guided Busway, I bounced off an invisible kerb and noticed the “pain” from the fall before I hit the ground, when I was still at a ~45 degree angle; yet when I then picked myself up and cycled on to the cinema I felt no pain — even though, when I checked myself at the end of the film (one of the Hobbit films), I found I’d been bleeding enough to make quite a mess.
- mikk14 7y ago
  It is pretty common under situation of physical effort not to feel pain, which makes some sort of evolutionary sense. Another anecdote: during last year's Tour de France, halfway climbing the Alpe d'Huez (~13.8km at avg 8% slope, nothing to scoff at), Vincenzo Nibali got knocked off his bike because it got hooked on a supporter's camera strap. He got back on his bike and completed the rest of the climb faster than the top contenders in front of him. When the doctors checked him, it turned out he had a fractured vertebra. I suppose that must've hurt.
Giornito 7y ago
I wonder if there is an increase or decrease in risk taking activities in relation to people that meditate or do yoga often.