Round Table: ‘The Steep Path from Basic Science to Novel Pain Therapies’, 17 Oct 2025

14 de October de 2025

To mark the Global Day Against Pain, celebrated on October 17^th, the Institute for Neurosciences, a joint center of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and Miguel Hernández University (UMH) of Elche, has organized a round table dedicated to current challenges in pain research and treatment, as part of the IN Seminar Series.

This event, promoted by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), the European Pain Federation (EFIC), and the World Health Organization (WHO) since 2004, aims to raise awareness about the importance of improving the quality of life of people living with pain and to foster research and development of new therapies.

The round table, titled “The Steep Path from Basic Science to Novel Pain Therapies,” will take place on Friday, October 17^th, 2025, at 12 pm, and will feature three international experts in pain research: Professor Michaela Kress (University of Innsbruck, Austria), Director of the Institute of Physiology and an expert in the development and modulation of nociceptor neurons by immune system signals; Professor Antonio Ferrer-Montiel (UMH, Spain), Director of the Institute for Research, Development and Innovation in Healthcare Biotechnology of Elche (IDiBE) and a specialist in the development of novel analgesic therapies targeting ion channels and neurotransmitters; and Dr. Edward Emery (Grünenthal, Germany), Director of Translational Research and an expert in the development of non-opioid analgesics focused on ion channels and neuroimmune pathways.

The speakers will share their experiences from academic, industrial, and pharmaceutical perspectives, offering complementary insights into the scientific, clinical, and regulatory challenges involved in developing effective therapies for chronic pain — a major social and healthcare issue affecting millions of people worldwide.

This event will be of particular interest to predoctoral and postdoctoral researchers, who will have the opportunity to actively participate in the discussion, asking questions about pain research and career development. Questions may be asked both in person and anonymously through the SLIDO app.

The event has been organized thanks to researchers Elvira de la Peña, Jorge Fernández, and Félix Viana from the Sensory Transduction and Nociception Laboratory, who coordinated the scientific program and the participation of the speakers. The round table has been made possible with the support of the Vice-Rectorate for Research of UMH and the pharmaceutical company Grünenthal.

More information can be found in the attached program.

Source: Institute for Neurosciences CSIC-UMH (in.comunicacion@umh.es)