Franziska Denk

Title

Neuro-inflammation in chronic pain

Abstract

Peripheral nervous system dysfunction is a key feature of chronic pain conditions. Traditionally, research has focused either on how the immune system drives this dysfunction or on cell-autonomous neuronal mechanisms that promote hyperexcitability in the nervous system.

Based on this perspective, any chronic pain condition that persists in the absence of inflammation is considered somewhat ‘mysterious’ and largely driven by central nervous system abnormalities. However, what we are missing from this view is the role of mesenchymal cells, like fibroblasts, mural cells and endothelial cells; all of them significantly impact the local tissue environment and its current inflammatory state. This talk will showcase results which suggest significant amounts of direct cross-talk between the mesenchyme and peripheral neurons. Ultimately, communication between these cell types may explain why pain can persist in the absence of leukocyte infiltration and/or activation. 

Biography

Franziska Denk is an Associate Professor at King’s College London, where she works on neuro-immune-stromal cell interactions in the context of chronic pain. Her lab uses transgenic models, stem cell derived human cell culture systems and high-throughput molecular analyses (https://www.franziskadenk.com/, @denk_lab). Franziska’s team is funded by the Wellcome Trust, the MRC, the European Union, industry and several charities. Her group is passionate about data sharing (Denk, Nature, 2017) and interdisciplinary research in an open, positive research culture (Soliman & Denk, BBI, 2023).  

Home-page: https://www.franziskadenk.com/research