Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have pinpointed a brain region called the caudal granular insular cortex, or CGIC, that acts as a switch turning acute pain into chronic pain. In animal studies, disabling this circuit prevented chronic pain from developing or reversed it once established. The findings, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, open paths to new treatments beyond opioids.
A team led by Linda Watkins, a distinguished professor of behavioral neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder, studied the CGIC in rats with sciatic nerve injuries. They used advanced chemogenetic methods and fluorescent proteins to track and silence specific neurons. Shutting down the CGIC pathway stopped pain signals from persisting after the injury healed, eliminating symptoms like allodynia, where light touch feels painful. Watkins stated, 'If this crucial decision maker is silenced, chronic pain does not occur. If it is already ongoing, chronic pain melts away.'
