Chief of Basic Research, Associate Professor
Anesthesiology
Anatomy and Neurobiology
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Our lab is interested in determining the cellular and molecular changes that underlie the development of chronic pain conditions. Over 50 million people in the U.S. alone suffer from chronic pain, but the treatments available to these patients are few and their use is limited by severe side effects of these medications. Unfortunately for these individuals, little progress has been made in the development of new types of medications to treat chronic pain.
In our lab, we utilize a combination of behavioral studies, patch clamp electrophysiology, molecular and genetic approaches to understand the role of neurotransmitter receptors and signaling pathways involved in nervous system plasticity that underlies pain sensitization. Our studies examine plasticity in primary sensory neurons where painful stimuli are transduced, in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord where the first synaptic relay occurs for pain signals headed to the brain, and in the amygdala, a region of the brain important for the negative emotional components of pain. Our goal is to identify molecular targets for the development of new classes of pain relieving medications.
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Research Publications
Hu HJ, Carrasquillo Y, Karim F, Jung WE, Nerbonne JM, Schwarz TL, Gereau RW 4th (2006 Apr 6). The kv4.2 potassium channel subunit is required for pain plasticity. Neuron. 50 (1): 89-100. Full Article >
Jin X, Gereau RW 4th (2006 Jan 4). Acute p38-mediated modulation of tetrodotoxin-resistant sodium channels in mouse sensory neurons by tumor necrosis factor-alpha. J Neurosci. 26 (1): 246-55. Full Article >
Karim F, Hu HJ, Adwanikar H, Kaplan DR, Gereau RW 4th (2006 Jan 16). Impaired Inflammatory Pain and Thermal Hyperalgesia in Mice Expressing Neuron-Specific Dominant Negative Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase Kinase (MEK). Mol Pain. 2 (1): 2. Full Article >
Neugebauer V, Li W, Bird GC, Bhave G, Gereau RW 4th (2003 Jan 1). Synaptic plasticity in the amygdala in a model of arthritic pain: differential roles of metabotropic glutamate receptors 1 and 5. J Neurosci. 23 (1): 52-63. Full Article >
Bhave G, Zhu W, Wang H, Brasier DJ, Oxford GS, Gereau RW 4th (2002 Aug 15). cAMP-dependent protein kinase regulates desensitization of the capsaicin receptor (VR1) by direct phosphorylation. Neuron. 35 (4): 721-31. Full Article >
Bhave G, Karim F, Carlton SM, Gereau RW 4th (2001 Apr). Peripheral group I metabotropic glutamate receptors modulate nociception in mice. Nat Neurosci. 4 (4): 417-23. Full Article >
Contact Info
Robert Gereau, Ph.D.
Office Location: Clinical Sciences Research Building, Rm 5530
Office Phone: 314-362-8312
Lab Phone: (314)362-8795
Campus Box: 8054
Fax: (314)362-8334
gereaur@wustl.edu
http://elysium.wustl.edu/rglab/
