Jimena Perez Sanchez
Postdoctoral Research Scientist
Research Interests
My research focuses on how neurons of the somatosensory system process information. I aim to explore the neural circuits that drive pain; from sensory neurons that relay information from the periphery to the spinal cord to descending modulation from supraspinal areas, addressing plastic mechanisms that lead to chronic pain in pathological conditions.
I use electrophysiology, but also imaging and behavioural assays, to study the impact of changes in sensory afferents and dorsal horn neurons in the spinal cord. I believe that the combination of two-photon microscopy with electrophysiology can give powerful insight into the mechanisms of spinal cord plasticity in normal and pathological conditions.
Recent publications
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Sodium-calcium exchanger-3 regulates pain “wind-up”: From human psychophysics to spinal mechanisms
Journal article
Trendafilova T. et al, (2022), Neuron, 110, 2571 - 2587.e13
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Harnessing bacterial toxins to treat pain
Journal article
Perez-Sanchez J. and Bennett DL., (2022), Nature Neuroscience, 25, 132 - 134
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The structure of sensory afferent compartments in health and disease
Journal article
Middleton SJ. et al, (2021), Journal of Anatomy
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Intravital Assessment of Cells Responses to Conducting Polymer-Coated Carbon Microfibres for Bridging Spinal Cord Injury
Journal article
El Waly B. et al, (2021), Cells, 10, 73 - 73
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Differential chloride homeostasis in the spinal dorsal horn locally shapes synaptic metaplasticity and modality-specific sensitization
Journal article
Ferrini F. et al, (2020), Nature Communications, 11