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All posts tagged marijuana

Posted:
November 7, 2013
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fergus

Professor Fergus Shanahan, from University College Cork (UCC), has been named this year’s SFI Researcher of the Year. Professor Shanahan, who is one of the leading international experts in the area of gastrointestinal research, was presented with the award by Mr Sean Sherlock, T.D, Minister for Research & Innovation in recognition of his significant contribution to understanding how intestinal bacteria influence both health and disease in the gut and beyond.

Professor Shanahan is the current Director of the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre (APC) an SFI funded Research Centre, and we featured his work in the area of radiation dose optimisation for Crohn’s disease imaging in series one of The Science Squad. You can view the segment by clicking here: APC – Crohn’s Disease Imaging

Fergus, congratulations from everyone at The Science Squad!

For further information on Professor Shanahan and the SFI award click here

Posted:
November 4, 2013
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Brain 2
New findings investigating the influence of a stress-sensitive genetic background on pain have been published in the leading journal in the field Pain, by NUI Galway researchers. The work, funded by Science Foundation Ireland and the Irish Research Council, was carried out by Dr David Finn and his research team in Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Centre for Pain Research and Galway Neuroscience Centre at the National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science, NUI Galway.Heightened pain in individuals who are stressed, anxious or depressed is a widely recognized but poorly understood phenomenon. A key factor is the contribution of genetic background and its influence on stress responding and emotional processing. A particular genetic background can predispose individuals to higher stress, anxiety and pain responses but it is not known why.

Previous findings have shown that pain is subject to influence by marijuana-like chemicals called endocannabinoids in a brain region called the rostral ventromedial medulla.  Working with Dr Finn, first author Dr Kieran Rea was able to show that a genetic background associated with higher stress and anxiety responses was associated with a greater pain response and a blunted response of these endocannabinoids in the part of the brain called the rostral ventromedial medulla.

Furthermore, this enhanced pain response was prevented by a drug that increased levels of these endocannabinoids in this part of the brain.  Further experimentation revealed that blockade of the cannabinoid CB1 receptor, at which these endocannabinoids act, exacerbated the pain response.

An increased understanding of how genetic background associated with stress and anxiety can influence pain is important from a fundamental physiological perspective and may also aid the identification of new ways of treating  persistent pain and the impact of  stress-related psychiatric disorders such anxiety or depression.

Click here to find out more…