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Temugin Berta, PhD

Title

Department

School

Address

Email

Associate Professor

Anesthesiology

UC College of Medicine

231 Albert Sabin Way, MSB3408

Cincinnati, Ohio 45267

[email protected]

• Our research focuses on understanding the mechanisms that regulate communication between neurons, immune cells, and glial cells. Our ultimate goal is to develop innovative therapeutic approaches for managing pain and itch.
• We employ a range of approaches including molecular and cellular biology, electrophysiology and calcium imaging, as well as animal modeling and behavioral experiments.
• We strongly believe in collaborative and translational research. If you are interested in learning more about our current research or working with our lab, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Research

Neuroimmunology and glial biology in health and disease are hot topics in current biomedical research, especially in the context of pain and itch. Chronic pain affects up to 30% of adults worldwide and costs the US economy over $600 billion per year. However, current treatments that focus on neuronal pathways (e.g. opioids) are inadequate. It is now clear that neuronal pathways alone do not drive chronic pain, and non-neuronal cells such as satellite glial cells, astrocytes, microglia, and various immune cells also contribute to and could potentially be targeted for the treatment of chronic pain (reviewed in Pain). We are currently utilizing advanced techniques, such as single-cell RNA sequencing, to study the transcriptional profiles of these non-neuronal cells (as seen in the image below) and their unique contributions to chronic pain. We are paying particular attention to satellite glial cells (article in BBI) and microglia (article in BBI), both of which play a crucial role in controlling chronic pain.

We are interested in studying the endogenous mechanisms involved in the resolution of inflammation, pain, and itch. Acutely inflamed tissues return to homeostasis through pro-resolution mechanisms. Our goal is to define these mechanisms in various pain conditions and utilize them to prevent and alleviate chronic pain and itch. This involves promoting anti-inflammatory macrophages and oxidative stress defenses, as well as using pro-resolution lipid mediators such as resolvins. For example, we have demonstrated how resolvin D3 can prevent and alleviate psoriasiform skin inflammation and chronic itch (article in Theranostics).

We aim to develop translational therapeutic approaches. Recently, we proposed the possibility that clinical strategies already in use for local sympathetic blockade (article in Anesthesiology) or a monoclonal antibody currently in clinical trials (article in J of Pain) could offer effective treatments for patients experiencing chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain. Additionally, in collaboration with our colleague, Prof. Davidson, we use human DRG tissues from organ donors to test in vitro mechanisms and treatments for clinical pain and itch.

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Team

Lab members:

**Temugin Berta, PhD** - Principal Investigator

**Sang Hoon Lee, PhD** - Instructor

Arthur Prudente, PhD - Postdoctoral Fellow

**Beatriz Adjafre** - Visiting Student