Biomarkers in Pain

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular and Translational Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 1191

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Surgical Sciences, Anaesthesiogy and Intensive Care Medicine, Uppsala University, 751 85 Uppsala, Sweden
Interests: anesthesiology; biomarkers, coagulation, cytokines, endotoxin; critical care medicine; intensive care; leptin; inflammation, intraosseous; sepsis; SAPS3; shock
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Guest Editor
Department of Medical Sciences, Clinical Chemistry, Uppsala University, 751 85 Uppsala, Sweden
Interests: endotoxin; intensive care; acute kidney injury; glomerular filtration rate markers; kidney tubular damage markers; cardiovascular risk markers; neutrophil activation markers; calprotectin
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Acute and chronic pain are two major reasons patients seek healthcare. Approximately 20% of the world’s population suffers from chronic pain, and in the USA alone, annual economic losses due to chronic pain are estimated to be USD 600 billion. Apart from being a major economic burden for society, chronic pain is also a major cause of decreased quality of life.

Chronic pain is often difficult to treat, and we have few objective measures for evaluating the pain level. Patients in pain therefore often struggle have their pain problems acknowledged, as pain is a subjective experience that is difficult to verify. During the last decade, biomarkers related to chronic pain have been investigated. The discovery of such markers could not only be used to improve diagnoses and prognostication of patients with chronic pain but could also support those who file an insurance claim after an injury. Biomarkers of pain could also be used to distinguish different causes of pain, allowing for improved selection of treatments. Such markers could also provide pharmaceutical companies with a tool for evaluating pain relief effects in clinical trials.

The focus of this Special Issue of Biomedicines is on the value of biomarkers of pain in a broad perspective.

Biomarkers of pain may be used to identify and quantify pain of various origins in order to facilitate adequate therapeutic interventions. Extensive prescription of analgesics, especially opioids, is associated with overdose deaths. Although pain is a subjective experience, the use of determinants of pain as an end point in clinical trials may help to predict the safety as well as analgesic efficacy of new drugs.

Dr. Mats Eriksson
Prof. Dr. Anders O. Larsson
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • analgesia
  • biomarker
  • CSF
  • cytokine
  • inflammation
  • neuropathy
  • neurotransmitter
  • pain
  • QoL
  • sensitization
  • sensory

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Research

20 pages, 2262 KiB  
Article
MiRNA Expression in Long-Distance Runners with Musculoskeletal Pain: Implications for Pain Pathophysiology
by Maria Rosaria Tumolo, Antonella Bodini, Francesco Bagordo, Carlo Giacomo Leo, Pierpaolo Mincarone, Elisabetta De Matteis, Saverio Sabina, Tiziana Grassi and Egeria Scoditti
Biomedicines 2024, 12(11), 2494; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines12112494 - 30 Oct 2024
Viewed by 498
Abstract
Background: miRNAs are short, non-coding RNAs whose deregulation has been shown in painful processes, including musculoskeletal pain. This condition, which causes disability, impacts quality of life, and contributes to substantial healthcare costs, is also a critical issue in sports. In this case-control [...] Read more.
Background: miRNAs are short, non-coding RNAs whose deregulation has been shown in painful processes, including musculoskeletal pain. This condition, which causes disability, impacts quality of life, and contributes to substantial healthcare costs, is also a critical issue in sports. In this case-control study, we evaluated the expression of four miRNAs involved in inflammation in runners with musculoskeletal pain and elucidated their functions and pathophysiological implications. Methods: A total of 17 runners with musculoskeletal pain and 17 age- and sex-matched runners without pain participated in this study. The levels of the miRNAs were evaluated by qRT-PCR. Bioinformatic tools were employed to identify the target genes and biological processes regulated by these miRNAs. Results: Compared to the controls, the runners with musculoskeletal pain exhibited significantly higher plasma levels of miR-133b (p = 0.02), miR-155-5p (p = 0.003) and let-7a-5p (p = 0.02). Multivariable regression analysis indicated that these three miRNAs exhibit a positive correlation (p < 0.05) with the presence of musculoskeletal pain, adjusted for age. Bioinformatic analysis suggested that the miRNAs hub genes are involved in regulatory processes, neuroinflammatory pathways, and human diseases that are associated with pain pathology. Conclusions: These results enhance our understanding of the potential role of miR-133b, miR-155-5p and let-7a-5p in pain-associated biological processes. The miRNA-mediated negative regulation of genes identified could explain the inflammatory and tissue repair processes in this population. Further studies are needed to confirm and validate the role of these miRNAs in painful conditions, especially considering the significant public health implications of managing inflammatory pain in sports. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Pain)
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