Future Leaders in Pain Research

2008 Grant Recipient: Khara M. Ramos, PhD

University of Colorado at Boulder
Boulder, CO
Beyond astrocytes and microglia: the role of oligodendrocytes and endothelial cells in exaggerated pain states

Please state which institution you are currently conducting research.

University of Colorado, Boulder

How did receiving the Future Leaders in Pain Research Grant impact your career in pain research?

With the grant money, I was able to generate pilot data that was included in a subsequent, successful application to NINDS for an NRSA Individual Post-doctoral Fellowship.

What is your current research focus? Briefly describe the importance of this work and how it advances the APS goals, mission, and your own personal development.

I am currently studying how central nervous system endothelial cells respond to drugs of abuse (including opioids), and how this may in turn facilitate neuroinflammation that is associated with both chronic pain and opioid exposure. This work has the potential to alter the current view of opioid-mediated pain management, both mechanistically and in terms of clinical practice.