Developing Improved Translational Models of Pain: A Role for the Behavioral Scientist

AbstractTranslational models of fear conditioning and extinction have elucidated a core neural network involved in the learning, consolidation, and expression of conditioned fear and its extinction. Anxious or trauma-exposed brains are characterized by dysregulated neural activations within regions of this fear network. In this study, we examined how the functional MRI activations of 10 brain regions commonly activated during fear conditioning and extinction might distinguish anxious or trauma-exposed brains from controls. To achieve this, activations during four phases of a fear conditioning and extinction paradigm in 304 participants with or without a psychiatric diagnosis were studied. By training convolutional neural networks (CNNs) using task-specific brain activations, we reliably distinguished the anxious and trauma-exposed brains from controls. The performance of models decreased significantly when we trained our CNN using activations from task-irrelevant brain regions or from a brain network that is irrelevant to fear. Our results suggest that neuroimaging data analytics of task-induced brain activations within the fear network might provide novel prospects for development of brain-based psychiatric diagnosis.

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Recent Advances in Nanomedicine for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Prostate Cancer Bone Metastasis

Molecules ◽

10.3390/molecules26020384 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 384

Author(s):

Daniel E. Hagaman ◽

Jossana A. Damasco ◽

Joy Vanessa D. Perez ◽

Raniv D. Rojo ◽

Marites P. Melancon

Keyword(s):

Prostate Cancer ◽

Bone Metastases ◽

Advanced Prostate Cancer ◽

Bone Fractures ◽

Diagnosis And Treatment ◽

Survival Times ◽

Preclinical Research ◽

Relieve Pain ◽

Translational Models

Patients with advanced prostate cancer can develop painful and debilitating bone metastases. Currently available interventions for prostate cancer bone metastases, including chemotherapy, bisphosphonates, and radiopharmaceuticals, are only palliative. They can relieve pain, reduce complications (e.g., bone fractures), and improve quality of life, but they do not significantly improve survival times. Therefore, additional strategies to enhance the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer bone metastases are needed. Nanotechnology is a versatile platform that has been used to increase the specificity and therapeutic efficacy of various treatments for prostate cancer bone metastases. In this review, we summarize preclinical research that utilizes nanotechnology to develop novel diagnostic imaging tools, translational models, and therapies to combat prostate cancer bone metastases.

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