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NEXT WEEK: Celebrating the work of Prof Shafaq Sikandar at the upcoming inaugural lecture

'Touching a nerve - reflections on pain mechanisms in the brain to sensory ganglia'
Inaugural Lecture of Professor Shafaq Sikandar

Published:

Date: Thu, 11 January 2024, 5.15pm
Location: Derek LT, JVSC Building, CHSQ
Registration: Eventbrite 
 
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'Touching a nerve - reflections on pain mechanisms in the brain to sensory ganglia'
 
The turn of the century has witnessed neuroscience research undergo a renaissance with the use of intricate techniques to monitor neuronal activity and generate high throughput data. Still, the mechanisms underlying the initiation and maintenance of chronic pain are not understood. How do noxious events drive maladaptive plasticity in sensory neurons to initiate and maintain chronic pain? I will share my journey in pain research to-date, starting as an electrophysiology enthusiast to leading a research team that aims to define the mechanisms underlying the transition from acute to chronic pain

Speaker bio

Professor Shafaq Sikandar is the group leader of the Sensory Neurophysiology lab at the William Harvey Research Institute. Her research training was based on rodent and human models to study the neurophysiology of pain. Shafaq’s PhD training was in the Pharmacology department of University College London, and she continued postdoctoral training in the Anaesthesiology department of University of California San Diego and in the Wolfson Institute of Biomedical Research of UCL. In 2018 she was awarded a Versus Arthritis fellowship and appointed lecturer in sensory biology in the Centre for Experimental Medicine & Rheumatology.

The Sensory Neurophysiology lab researches neuronal mechanisms underlying the transition from acute to chronic pain, with a focus on musculoskeletal pain and neuro-immune interactions. We use in vivo and back translational approaches with mouse models in combination with molecular biology. Clinical studies are focussed on patients with post-surgical pain, arthritis, cancer pain and fibromyalgia.
Shafaq teaches on BSc modules Repair & regeneration (BMD361) / Disconnected pathways (ICM6013) and is the FMD Equality Diversity and Inclusion Lead for Communications and Engagement.
 
5.15pm - Event starts, Introduction of Professor Shafaq Sikandar
5.20pm - ‘Touching a nerve - reflections on pain mechanisms in the brain to sensory ganglia' by Professor Shafaq Sikandar
6.10pm - Reception
 
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