Pain and Aging Research Translational Initiative

描述(由申请人提供)：正如医学研究所(IOM)最近的一份报告所详细说明的那样，慢性疼痛是一个主要的公共卫生问题，影响着1亿美国成年人，每年花费超过5000亿美元。衰老会增加慢性疼痛的风险，有一半的老年人报告持续或反复疼痛，而衰老与疼痛相关的生理和心理社会功能的丧失更大。目前关于疼痛和衰老的知识令人惊讶地有限，改善对与年龄相关的疼痛变化背后的神经生物学和心理社会机制的理解至关重要，以便为旨在减轻老年人疼痛的干预措施提供信息。事实上，NIA最近发布了一系列计划公告，鼓励从老龄化的角度对疼痛进行研究(Pain in Aging PA-13-058,059&060)，将其确定为高度优先的研究主题。我们的研究小组记录了与年龄相关的疼痛敏感性和疼痛调制实验室指标的变化，结果显示，老年人表现出更强的疼痛促进作用(例如，疼痛的时间总和)和减弱的疼痛抑制反应(例如，条件性疼痛调制)。内源性疼痛调节的年龄相关变化可能部分解释了与年龄相关的临床疼痛风险的增加。提高我们对疼痛和衰老的理解需要协调一致的 翻译研究工作得到了为此目的量身定做的充足基础设施的支持。K07学术事业奖建议开发一个全大学范围的计划，旨在促进和扩大疼痛和衰老方面的多学科研究，并提供物理和后勤基础设施来支持疼痛和衰老的研究工作。为了支持这一目标，我将实施一项职业发展计划，旨在增加他在老龄化研究方面的专业知识，增强他的领导技能，并扩大他的指导能力。此外，由各自领域的国家和国际领导人组成的杰出的外部和内部咨询委员会将在这些努力中提供支持。这一倡议的长期结果将是加强佛罗里达大学的疼痛和衰老研究组合，将其提升到全国突出地位。这项研究目标将通过解决以下具体目标来实现：具体目标1--在佛罗里达大学制定一个积极和有重点的关于疼痛和衰老的多学科翻译研究计划；具体目标2：加强物质和后勤基础设施，支持关于疼痛和衰老的临床和翻译研究；具体目标3：通过为各级年轻学者提供疼痛和衰老方面的资源和指导，促进下一代老年疼痛科学家的涌现 关于职业发展的。最终，UF疼痛和衰老研究翻译计划的发展将极大地改善当地的研究环境，并将通过研究与年龄相关的疼痛体验变化背后的机制的尖端研究来推动该领域的发展。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): As detailed in a recent Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, chronic pain represents a major public health concern, affecting 100 million U.S. adults and costing more than $500 billion annually. Aging confers increased risk for chronic pain, with half of older adults reporting persistent or recurring pain, and aging is associated with greater pain-related loss of physical and psychosocial function. Current knowledge regarding pain and aging is surprisingly limited, and an improved understanding of the neurobiological and psychosocial mechanisms underlying age-related changes in pain is critical in order to inform interventions aimed at reducing pain in the elderly. Indeed, NIA recently has issued a series of Program Announcements encouraging studies of pain from an aging perspective (Pain in Aging PA-13-058, 059, & 060), identifying this as a high priority research topic. Our research group has documented age-related changes in laboratory measures of pain sensitivity and pain modulation, such that older adults exhibit enhanced pain facilitation (e.g. temporal summation of pain) and diminished pain inhibitory responses (e.g. conditioned pain modulation). The age-related changes in endogenous pain modulation may in part explain age-associated increases in risk for clinical pain. Advancing our understanding of pain and aging will require a coordinated translational research effort buttressed by sufficient infrastructure tailored for this purpose. Ths K07 Academic Career Award proposes to develop a University-wide program designed to facilitate and expand multidisciplinary research in pain and aging and to provide physical and logistical infrastructure to support pain and aging research efforts. In support of this goal, the I will pursue a career development plan designed to increase his expertise in aging research, enhance his leadership skills, and broaden his mentoring capacity. In addition, the PI will be supported in these endeavors by outstanding External and Internal Advisory Committees comprised of national and international leaders in their fields. The long-term outcome of this initiative will be to enhance the portfolio of pain and aging research at the University of Florida elevating it to national prominence. This research goal with be achieved by addressing the following specific aims: Specific Aim 1 - To develop an active and focused multidisciplinary translational research program on pain and aging at the University of Florida; Specific Aim 2: To enhance physical and logistical infrastructure in support of clinical and translational studies on pain and aging; Specific Aim 3: To foster the emergence of the next generation of geriatric pain scientists by providing resources and mentoring in pain and aging for junior scholars at all levels of career development. Ultimately, development of the UF Pain and Aging Research Translational Initiative will greatly enhance the local research environment and will move the field forward through cutting edge research investigating the mechanisms underlying age-related changes in the experience of pain.