Understanding pain mechanisms: RNA expression analysis of peripheral nervous system tissue

24 Jun 2020

Learn how novel RNA in situ hybridization technology, RNAscope^®, can be applied to the analysis of human and rodent peripheral nervous system tissue to better understand the molecular mechanisms of pain.

In this SelectScience webinar, Prof. Theodore Price and Dr. Stephanie Shiers, of the Department of Neuroscience and Center for Advanced Pain Studies at University of Texas at Dallas, will discuss technical aspects and challenges to using RNAscope^® technology for RNA expression analysis on rodent and human dorsal root ganglion (DRG).

Dr. Shiers will describe her extensive experience working with human tissues from organ donors and how RNAscope can be used to gain molecular insight into pain mechanisms in humans. Prof. Price will discuss recent advances in understanding how viruses might interact with the peripheral nervous system to cause pain or exacerbate viral disease.

Key learning objectives:

• Human and mouse sensory neuron populations are distinct — which has important implications for pain mechanisms
• Type I interferons act directly on DRG neurons and increase their excitability
• RNAscope technology is a useful tool for analysis of human and rodent peripheral nervous system tissue