Bridging the translational divide: Development of human spinal cord assays for investigating molecular mechanisms and treatments for pain

Summary: In this talk, Dr. Hildebrand will highlight his recent work aimed at bridging the translational divide between rodent preclinical work on spinal pain processing and new treatment approaches for humans. His team has developed new human spinal cord tissue models of pain signaling that parallel rodent in vivo and ex vivo pain models. Using these complementary approaches, they are investigating molecular mechanisms of pain processing across development, sex and species, including the regulation of excitatory glutamate receptors and neuronal excitability in dorsal horn nociceptive circuits.

 Mike Hildebrand Bio: Dr. Mike Hildebrand completed his PhD in neurophysiology in Dr. Terry Snutch’s lab at UBC, followed by an industrial R&D fellowship at NeuroMed Pharmaceuticals in Vancouver. After this, Dr. Hildebrand completed an academic postdoctoral fellowship in Mike Salter’s lab at Sick Kids Hospital. Dr. Hildebrand is now leading a translational pain research program as a Professor in the Neuroscience Department at Carleton University and as an Affiliate Investigator at The Ottawa Hospital. His research team is studying mechanisms of acute and chronic pain processing using animal and human spinal cord tissue models. Dr. Hildebrand is also the Chair of the Scientific Program Committee of the Canadian Pain Society and an Associate Dean in Graduate Studies at Carleton.