Stress and prolactin: why functional pain affects women more
A prolactin-mediated neuroendocrine link between stress-induced latent sensitization and female-selective pain
This research looks at whether repeated stress causes prolactin-related changes in pain-sensing nerves that make women more likely to have recurring functional pain attacks like migraine, fibromyalgia, or irritable bowel syndrome.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Arizona NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Tucson, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11138669 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers use an injury-free rodent model that mimics the pain-free periods and sudden attacks people with functional pain syndromes experience to study how repeated stress primes the nervous system. They will focus on the hypothalamus, kappa opioid receptor signaling, prolactin release, and changes in prolactin receptor forms in female pain-sensing nerves. Molecular tools including CRISPR and other lab techniques will be used to probe these hormone-driven pathways. This work is preclinical and based at the University of Arizona, so it does not appear to enroll patients under this grant.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People assigned female at birth who experience recurrent functional pain syndromes such as migraine, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, or temporomandibular disorder are most relevant to the biology studied, though this grant itself appears preclinical and does not recruit patients.
Not a fit: Patients whose pain is caused by clear tissue injury, infection, or other structural disease, and those with non–female-predominant pain mechanisms, are less likely to receive direct benefit from this specific line of work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could explain a female-specific cause of functional pain and point to hormone- or receptor-targeted ways to prevent or reduce pain attacks.
How similar studies have performed: Prior animal studies have linked stress, kappa opioid receptors, and prolactin to pain sensitization, but the focus on female-specific prolactin receptor changes and this exact neuroendocrine pathway is relatively novel and mainly at the preclinical stage.
Where this research is happening
Tucson, United States
- University of Arizona — Tucson, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Porreca, Frank — University of Arizona
- Study coordinator: Porreca, Frank
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 below.