A Snapshot seminar hosted by the School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience
Host: Petra Fischer
Abstract: Current treatments for pain often provide incomplete symptom relief and can also be accompanied by adverse effects and the potential for addiction, yet efforts to develop new treatments are thwarted by the lack of reliable translation from preclinical models. One approach to improve the success rate is to utilise biomarkers to confirm target-engagement and demonstrate relevant modulation of the nociceptive system in vivo. This talk will outline the efforts of the IMI-PainCare consortium to standardise and evaluate several translatable, pharmacodynamic (PD) biomarkers relevant to drug discovery in the pain field. The four primary assays being utilized in this project are: (i) peripheral nerve excitability testing, (ii) somatosensory-evoked, spinal potentials (N13 response), (iii) EEG ± laser-evoked potentials (LEPs) and (iv) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Particular attention will be paid to the properties of these biomarkers in preclinical species as they are back translated from humans to rodents. In addition to profiling the similarity between species, their modulation by three test compounds (lacosamide, pregabalin & tapentadol) will also be outlined. Finally, with the aid of pharmacokinetic (PK) and PD profiles generated for each compound (including within-subject PK & PD), the PK-PD relationships characterising the pharmacological effects will also be discussed.
After the talk, there will also be coffee and biscuits in the tearoom, which will provide an opportunity to network or catch up with colleagues.