PlexinA2 and long-lasting nerve pain
Official title: Regulation and Function of PlexinA2 Forward Signaling in Persistent Pain
Funded at Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst · NIH-11171809 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are looking at a protein called PlexinA2 to understand why nerve injuries lead to persistent neuropathic pain for some people.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Little Rock, United States) |
| Project start | July 11, 2017 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $302,374 |
| NIH project number | 5P20GM121293-09 |
| Project ID | NIH-11171809 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with neuropathic or persistent pain following peripheral nerve injury, or those recovering from recent nerve trauma, would be the most relevant candidates for participation or future trials.
✕Less likely to help
People whose pain comes from non-nerve causes (for example, purely joint or muscle pain) or those seeking immediate symptom relief are unlikely to get direct benefit from this basic-science work.
What this research studies
If you have nerve injury–related pain, this project focuses on the dorsal root ganglion, the cluster of sensory nerve cells that first process pain signals. The team maps how chromatin (the packaging around genes) opens or closes after injury and how that changes which genes get turned on by transcription factors. By studying PlexinA2 signaling and these epigenetic switches in pain-relevant nerve cells, they hope to find specific regulatory sites that drive long-term nerve hyperexcitability. The work combines molecular mapping with models of nerve injury to reveal mechanisms that could be targeted in the future.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal new biological targets or biomarkers that lead to better treatments to prevent or reduce chronic neuropathic pain.
How similar studies have gone: This builds on emerging epigenetics research in pain and uses novel chromatin-mapping approaches in nerve cells, so it is promising but still relatively new and exploratory.
Where this research is happening
-
Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst
Little Rock, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Stephens, Kimberly E — Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst
- Study coordinator: Stephens, Kimberly E
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.