Lab overview
My laboratory has taken a multidisciplinary approach using electrophysiological and pharmacological approaches in combination to molecular biology, genetics and behavioral methods to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of pain and itch under physiological and pathological conditions focusing on the transient receptor potential (TRP) channels expressed by epidermal keratinocytes, cutaneous immune cells (dendritic cells, macrophages, and lymphocytes), and primary sensory neurons.
The long term goal of my research is to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which itch sensation is encoded in the skin focusing on interaction between the resident skin cells and the primary sensory neurons, which is a key driving force to produce peripheral sensitization. Identification of cutaneous cells and molecules that are critically involved in the pathogenesis of chronic pruritus will provide novel insights into the molecular and cellular basis of chronic itch, which is essential to the development of effective anti-pruritic drugs.