Chronic pain affects nearly 50 million Americans, but new research offers hope for relief. Scientists have identified a key brain region and cell type that can quiet persistent pain signals. The discovery suggests that by targeting these cells, clinicians may be able to develop more effective treatments.
Unlike acute or short-lived pain, which acts as a warning signal to avoid danger, chronic pain persists long after the initial injury has healed. This is because the alarm is stuck on, and the pain itself becomes the problem. Researchers have now found that a specific group of cells in the brainstem can modulate chronic pain signals.
The study’s lead author, J. Nicholas Betley, explains that these cells are activated during enduring pain states but also integrate information about hunger, fear, and thirst, allowing for pain signals to be modulated by other brain circuits. This “built-in switch” enables the brain to prioritize urgent survival needs over chronic pain.
The researchers used calcium imaging to watch neurons fire in real time and found that these cells didn’t just respond briefly to acute pain but continued firing steadily during chronic pain states, or “tonic activity.” This persistent activity may encode the lasting pain state people feel long after an accident or surgery.
The discovery suggests that behavioral interventions such as exercise, meditation, and cognitive behavioral therapy can influence how these brain circuits fire, potentially leading to more effective treatments. The researchers also found that other urgent survival needs like hunger and fear can reduce chronic pain responses, supporting a “filtering of sensory input” mechanism in the brain.
While there is still much work to be done, this research offers new hope for developing targeted treatments for chronic pain. By understanding how these cells function, clinicians may be able to develop more effective therapies that prioritize brain circuitry over nerve signals.
Source: https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/select-neurons-brainstem-may-hold-key-treating-chronic-pain