Future Leaders in Pain Research

2010 Grant Recipient: Shivani B. Ruparel, MS PhD

University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
San Antonio, TX
Role of Oxidized Linoleic Acid Metabolities

Please state which institution you are currently conducting research.

University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

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

The money obtained from the grants program was used not only towards generating preliminary data for future grant applications but also towards generating enough data for a manuscript which was submitted in Journal of Pain in January 2012. The grants program has given me opportunities to attend national and international meetings such as the APS annual meeting 2011 and 2012 as well as IASP annual meeting 2012. This in turn allowed me to present my research and get valuable inputs from experts in the field regarding my research.

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.

Inadequate pain control represents a major medical problem that afflicts a substantial number of patients, and available treatments are often limited by either poor efficacy or adverse side effects. Importantly, many studies using TRPV1 receptor antagonists demonstrate significant inhibition of inflammatory hyperalgesia/allodynia, suggesting that endogenous TRPV1 agonists are released from injured tissues Our group has demonstrated recently that oxidized linoleic acid metabolites (OLAMs) are released from injured tissue and specifically activate TRPV1. These findings are highly significant since demonstration of endogenous regulators of TRPV1 activity may have considerable medical implications by identifying novel targets for analgesic development and equally important scientific implications by revealing novel mediators of TRPV1 activities following tissue injury. Our current research focus is elucidating pathways responsible for OLAM synthesis that could be used as potential targets for novel analgesics with lesser side effects.

Are you still an APS member? If yes, do you feel that it has been of value to your professional development?

Yes I am still an APS member. Attending APS annual meetings have allowed me to present my research and get valuable inputs from experts in the field that has lead me to advance my research constructively and successfully. Additionally, it has provided opportunities to network and build contacts, providing me with fruitful career development advice.