Blocking chronic pain and inflammation.

• Position: Research - Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Brief Article

New information on a cellular messenger may lead to powerful painkilling drugs, researchers report. Blocking a common signaling messenger between cells might shut down the chronic pain and inflammation that plagues millions, says Lisa Teather, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, who studies platelet-activating factor (PAF), a blood-clotting agent. It also causes the buildup of prostaglandins--derivatives of fatty acids associated with chronic pain and inflammation.

Teather, Richard Wurtman...