ResolvePAIN enters second funding period

The DFG has renewed funding for the Clinical Research Group KFO 5001, providing over €8 million to support its work for another four years. The DCL will participate with a project on periaqueductal grey circuit processes during pain resolution. Chronic pain is thought to be related to changes in certain brain pathways, particularly in a region of the brainstem called the periaqueductal gray (PAG). However, exactly how these changes contribute to pain is still not fully known. In our project for ResolvePAIN, we combine advanced brain imaging and optogenetics with electrocardiac recordings in mice to better understand how PAG circuits influence both short-term and long-lasting pain. We are especially interested in how pain is shaped by social factors and by learning processes, and how these influences affect the way pain is experienced and reduced. Overall, this work aims to clarify how brainstem circuits help regulate and resolve pain.