Bin Pan, PhD
Associate Professor
Contact Information
Education
PhD, Xi'an Jiaotong University, China
Postdoctoral training, Neurology, University of California at Berkeley
Postdoctoral training, Neuropharmacology, Medical College of Wisconsin
Research Interests
- Mechanisms of neuropathic pain
- Chronic pain induced depression
Chronic pain is a major public health challenge that is inadequately addressed. The complexity of mechanisms underlying chronic pain includes not only a localized, peripheral disorder, but also widespread central nervous system dysfunction.
In the past, we found that:
- The extracellular matrix glycoprotein thrombospondin-4 is increased after nerve injury and this increased TSP4 can regulate voltage activated calcium channels and intracellular calcium signaling in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons
- DRG field stimulation can relieve spontaneous and induced neuropathic pain in rats.
In the future, we will investigate changed synaptic transmission in spinal cord and cerebral cortex, which contribute to chronic pain.
Many patients with chronic pain conditions suffer from depression with a prevalence of suicidal ideation. The underlying mechanisms are still unknown. In this project, I will investigate synaptic mechanisms of chronic pain-induced depression with multiple techniques including behavioral tests, in vivo and in vitro brain slice neurophysiological recording, molecular analysis, and genetic engineering