Pain is defined as the perception of an unpleasant stimulus leading to physical discomfort and emotional distress. Pain, when acute, is of value to survival. It lets us know when something is wrong and has a physiological protective role, but pain can become pathological when chronic. Chronic pain is a clinical symptom in many conditions and can be caused by three different sources: inflammatory pain, nociceptive pain, and neuropathic pain. Pain can also be labeled as transient, acute, and chronic. There are a multitude of drugs that are used to alleviate pain. However, certain drugs are not as safe or efficacious in the long-term treatment of patients. Patients can start to not only develop a tolerance to the pharmaceutical compounds used to treat them but may develop a dependence on certain analgesics, such as opioids. For this reason, it is important to improve our understanding of the molecular and neural mechanisms in the brain which underlie pain, as well as the mechanisms involved in the development of tolerance to painkiller drugs. Furthermore, novel therapeutics are needed to help treat and manage chronic pain, which should ideally be safer, more effective, and less susceptible to drug tolerance than current therapeutics.
The aim of this Research Topic is to present important new research on the molecular mechanisms implicated in pain relief and drug tolerance as well as to promote the investigation of new therapeutic targets. Each pain type and source display unique molecular signatures and involve different nociceptors and signaling pathways. Some of the major challenges in contemporary pain research are to improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of how pain sensation is regulated in the “pain pathways” of the central nervous system, how classical pain-relieving drugs interact with these pathways, and what the mechanisms behind drug tolerance to analgesics are. Of utmost importance is also novel research into the molecular mechanisms of action of endogenous analgesics, such as oxytocin, which is expected to pave the way towards the discovery of novel analgesic therapeutics with significantly decreased tolerance buildup.
We strongly encourage the submission of manuscripts around research focusing on the pathways and receptors involved in pain relief and drug tolerance. In addition to this, we encourage submissions of manuscripts exploring endogenous analgesic molecules and their mechanisms of action to alleviate pain as these could be potential therapeutic targets.
This Research Topic welcomes Original Research and Review Articles related to, but not limited to:
• Studies investigating the molecular pathways implicated in drug tolerance
• Research on endogenous analgesics and their mechanisms of action
• Studies using techniques such as microarrays, proteomics, and cluster analysis to investigate the molecules involved in pain and pain relief
• Studies investigating the molecular and signaling pathways of the endogenous opioid system as well as other endogenous pain-modulating systems
Pain is defined as the perception of an unpleasant stimulus leading to physical discomfort and emotional distress. Pain, when acute, is of value to survival. It lets us know when something is wrong and has a physiological protective role, but pain can become pathological when chronic. Chronic pain is a clinical symptom in many conditions and can be caused by three different sources: inflammatory pain, nociceptive pain, and neuropathic pain. Pain can also be labeled as transient, acute, and chronic. There are a multitude of drugs that are used to alleviate pain. However, certain drugs are not as safe or efficacious in the long-term treatment of patients. Patients can start to not only develop a tolerance to the pharmaceutical compounds used to treat them but may develop a dependence on certain analgesics, such as opioids. For this reason, it is important to improve our understanding of the molecular and neural mechanisms in the brain which underlie pain, as well as the mechanisms involved in the development of tolerance to painkiller drugs. Furthermore, novel therapeutics are needed to help treat and manage chronic pain, which should ideally be safer, more effective, and less susceptible to drug tolerance than current therapeutics.
The aim of this Research Topic is to present important new research on the molecular mechanisms implicated in pain relief and drug tolerance as well as to promote the investigation of new therapeutic targets. Each pain type and source display unique molecular signatures and involve different nociceptors and signaling pathways. Some of the major challenges in contemporary pain research are to improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of how pain sensation is regulated in the “pain pathways” of the central nervous system, how classical pain-relieving drugs interact with these pathways, and what the mechanisms behind drug tolerance to analgesics are. Of utmost importance is also novel research into the molecular mechanisms of action of endogenous analgesics, such as oxytocin, which is expected to pave the way towards the discovery of novel analgesic therapeutics with significantly decreased tolerance buildup.
We strongly encourage the submission of manuscripts around research focusing on the pathways and receptors involved in pain relief and drug tolerance. In addition to this, we encourage submissions of manuscripts exploring endogenous analgesic molecules and their mechanisms of action to alleviate pain as these could be potential therapeutic targets.
This Research Topic welcomes Original Research and Review Articles related to, but not limited to:
• Studies investigating the molecular pathways implicated in drug tolerance
• Research on endogenous analgesics and their mechanisms of action
• Studies using techniques such as microarrays, proteomics, and cluster analysis to investigate the molecules involved in pain and pain relief
• Studies investigating the molecular and signaling pathways of the endogenous opioid system as well as other endogenous pain-modulating systems