# Project 1: Multi-omic characterization of human nociceptors

> **NIH NIH U19** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2024 · $399,883

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY (Project 1)
The lack of translation between mouse and human pain treatments has highlighted limitations of both the animal
models of pain and molecular tools used to characterize them. This has prompted major efforts to characterize
molecular features that are expressed in human nociceptors which may provide new ideas for pain therapeutic
design. Recent advances in single-cell genomics now make it possible to characterize gene expression profiles,
location in space, and the physiology of individual cells within complex tissues at unprecedented resolution. We
have thus developed protocols for characterizing these multi-dimensional features of human nociceptors at
single-cell resolution and propose to build upon these protocols here and in coordination with other U19
PRECISION Human Pain Centers.
Molecular
We then propose to leverage our single-cell genomic and epigenomic protocols to build a human nociceptor cell
atlas derived from a diverse group of donor samples. These data will help characterize the diversity of human
nociceptor subtypes, the epigenomic elements that establish these subtypes, and the effect of common genetic
variation on gene expression within these clinically important cell types. Together, these datasets will provide a
rich resource for mining novel pain therapeutic targets and for interpreting how common genetic variation affects
gene expression in human nociceptors. This latter point is especially important for interpreting case-control
studies across the pain research community.
Structural
We will generate and analyze large-scale single-cell spatial transcriptomic data of human ganglia to study the
location of nociceptor subtypes in sensory ganglia and whether there are unique gene expression profiles in the
non-neuronal cells (e.g. satellite glia) that are closely associated nociceptors as compared to other neuronal
subtypes.
Physiological
We will culture fresh sensory neurons from each donor and measure their spontaneous and capsaicin-evoked
activity. We will then use single-cell spatial transcriptomics to correlate gene expression profiles in each neuron
with their associated spontaneous and capsaicin-evoked activity. These data will generate a resource that
integrates both molecular and functional dimensions nociceptors.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10928098
- **Project number:** 5U19NS130617-03
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** William Russell Renthal
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $399,883
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-09-19 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10928098

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10928098, Project 1: Multi-omic characterization of human nociceptors (5U19NS130617-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10928098. Licensed CC0.

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