Cell Biology

To find treatments for neuropathic and inflammatory pain by identifying specific molecular targets is the main objective of the modern molecular pain research. Migraine, the most common neurological disease in the Western World is associated with neurogenic inflammation in meninges, but the mechanism of persisting pain in migraine remains unknown.

Our ultimate goal is to understand why neurons become hyperexcitable in migraine. A likely key player in pain transduction is a subtype of ATP-gated channels, namely the P2X3 receptor. P2X3 receptors are almost exclusively expressed by nociceptive sensory neurons, in particular, by trigeminal nerve terminals in meninges. We plan to study the role of ATP-sensitive P2X3 receptors and other pain transducers in trigeminal neurons in control and in migraine-like conditions.

We will apply a multidisciplinary approach including electrophysiology, live-cell imaging, molecular biology, kinetic modeling, and such state-of-the-art techniques as total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy. These studies will be complemented by patch-clamp recordings from brainstem slices and by transcranial imaging in vivo. Results of our study will help develop novel therapeutic strategies for treatment of chronic pain, including migraine.

Our studies we will perform in collaboration with other groups inside the A.I. Virtanen Institute and with partners in the Universities of Helsinki as well as with research groups from Italy, Germany, Russia, Czech Republic and France.