# Neurobiology Core C

> **NIH NIH P30** · RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER · 2023 · $269,471

## Abstract

Project summary
The overarching goal of the Chicago Center on Musculoskeletal Pain (C-COMP) is to foster and support
research and training aimed at understanding the mechanisms underlying pain associated with
musculoskeletal (MSK) diseases, with the ultimate goal of better managing and preventing it. To support high-
quality, innovative research that will accelerate our understanding of the mechanisms underlying MSK pain
and, hence, facilitate identification of new therapeutic targets, we will capitalize on existing expertise and
resources to create a Neurobiology Core C that will provide state-of-the-art physiological, transcriptomal, and
neuroanatomical tools as well as scientific expertise for studying the mechanisms of MSK pain. The methods
offered in this core have been chosen to synergize with the behavioral assessments offered in Core B.
Technologies for studying the mechanisms through which the peripheral and central nervous systems
coordinate to produce pain signaling have become much more sophisticated over the last decade, leading to
many new insights into the neural mechanisms underlying chronic pain states. Our laboratories at Rush and
Northwestern University - in large parts through NIAMS supported funding - have led the way in developing
these tools for use in studying MSK pain in particular. The adoption of these sophisticated techniques in the
broader MSK field is, however, hindered by a lack of availability to most laboratories. The resources and
services selected for this core have been chosen to fill this need. Our own combined cumulative experience
(>50 years) and established innovation and international leadership in bridging the neuroscience and MSK
fields, and our expertise in these various technologies provides us with unique qualifications for advising
researchers studying the neurobiology of MSK pain. Aim 1. Establish a centralized service for assessing
physiological changes in the peripheral nervous system of preclinical models of MSK disease. The
Core will provide consultation, scientific expertise, technical training, and technical services for the evaluation
of sensory neuron physiology through the use of calcium imaging, including in vivo calcium imaging,
electrophysiology, and chemo/opto-genetics. Aim 2. Establish a centralized resource for transcriptomal
analysis of the peripheral nervous system. The Core will provide training and technical services for
collecting and preparing dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons for RNA-seq (bulk and single cell). Aim 3. Provide
a centralized resource for studying plasticity in neuroanatomy in preclinical MSK models. The core will
provide technical assistance and training for performing anatomical studies of the peripheral nervous system -
particularly joint innervation, including intra-articular innervation, immunohistochemistry of DRG, RNAscope in
situ hybridization, tissue culture of DRG cells, and genetic tools for labeling particular types of cells (reporter
mice, AAVs), and ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10676993
- **Project number:** 5P30AR079206-03
- **Recipient organization:** RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** RICHARD J MILLER
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $269,471
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-14 → 2026-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10676993

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10676993, Neurobiology Core C (5P30AR079206-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10676993. Licensed CC0.

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