Psychosocial Influences on Nociception

描述(申请人提供)：心理和生理因素都会导致个体在伤害性感受上的差异。目前的建议考察了压力和社会支持对伤害性感受的影响，以及这些心理结构通过哪些生理机制影响伤害性行为。我们将使用一个备用的小鼠神经损伤模型来1)定义压力影响伤害性感受的参数，2)评估荷尔蒙和炎症反应在调节应激诱导的痛觉异常增加中的重要性，3)确定社会互动减少痛觉异常的生理机制，以及4)确定社会互动是否可以减轻压力对伤害性感受的影响。总体假设是，通过改变皮质类固醇暴露的机制，压力将减少，社会互动将增加，伤害性阈值将增加。作为这项建议的一部分，收集的数据将增加我们对心理变量，如压力和社会支持，如何影响伤害阈值的理解。最终，更好地了解神经病理性疼痛的发病机制可以促进人类和其他动物预防和治疗疼痛相关综合征的治疗方法的发展。与公共卫生相关的疼痛作为预防或限制组织损伤的一种手段，具有提高对有害刺激的认识的非常重要的、适应性的功能，然而，当疼痛变得顽固或由典型的无害刺激引起时，它就会对个体造成衰弱，并对生活质量产生负面影响。本研究的主要目的是提供对心理社会影响疼痛的生理机制的洞察，以期更好地理解导致个体在疼痛行为的发展和表达上存在差异的因素。提高对疼痛行为背后的生理机制的理解有望促进人类疼痛的治疗。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Both psychological and physiological factors contribute to individual differences in nociception. The current proposal examines the effects of stress and social support on nociception and the physiological mechanisms through which these psychological constructs influence nociceptive behavior. We will use a spared nerve injury model in mice to 1) define the parameters under which stress affects nociception, 2) to evaluate the importance of hormonal and inflammatory responses in mediating stress-induced increases in allodynia, 3) to determine the physiological mechanisms through which social interaction decreases allodynia, and 4) determine whether social interaction can mitigate the effects of stress on nociception. The overall hypothesis is that stress will decrease, and social interaction will increase, nociceptive thresholds through a mechanism that involves altered corticosteroid exposure. The data collected as part of this proposal will increase our understanding of the how psychological variables, such as stress and social support, affect nociceptive thresholds. Ultimately, a better understanding of the pathogenesis of neuropathic pain could facilitate the development of therapeutic approaches for the prevention and treatment of pain-related syndromes in humans and other animals. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE Pain serves a very important, adaptive, function of increasing awareness of noxious stimuli as a means of preventing or limiting tissue damage, however, when pain becomes intractable or is elicited by typically innocuous stimuli, then it becomes debilitating to the individual and negatively impacts quality of life. The overarching goal of this proposal is to provide insights into the physiological mechanisms underlying psychosocial influences on pain, in hopes of better understanding the factors that contribute to individual differences in the development and expression pain behaviors. Improved understanding of the physiological mechanisms underlying pain behavior is expected to lead to improved treatment of pain in humans.