Project information
Multidisciplinary approach to modulate neuroimmune crosstalk associated with pathological pain after chronic spinal cord injury

Background/main objective: Up to 60% of subjects affected by spinal cord injury (SCI) develop pathological pain. Given the lack of efficient treatment, SCI-pain becomes chronic significantly decreasing the quality of life (QoL). Several chemokines have been involved in the sensitization of spinal cord after SCI, and may also exert nociceptive-related roles at supraspinal structures. The present project hypothesizes that blocking spinal and supraspinal chemokines would be a promising therapeutic strategy to alleviate SCI-pain. To this end, it is aimed to study (1) the chemokines involvement in cell-signalling crosstalk associated with SCI-pain in spinal and supraspinal structures, (2) the modulation of these chemokines and SCI-pain, by means of (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) treatment during acute and chronic SCI-phases, and (3) the spectral fingerprints of blood, spinal and supraspinal structures of SCI-mice with and without treatment in order to identify new therapeutic targets related to chronic SCI-pain.