Features
Targeting Sodium Channels for Pain Relief
Glial Ties to Persistent Pain
Animal Analgesics
Novel Analgesics at a Snail’s Pace
Mining Spider Toxins for Analgesic Clues
Toxin from a Dangerous Fish Delicacy
Sourcing Painkillers from Scorpions’ Stings
Sea Anemone Toxin Could Treat Autoimmunity
Snake Venoms Cause and Block Pain
Contributors
Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the January 2018 issue of The Scientist.
Editorial
Prizes and Penalties
Life is filled with pleasure and pain. Science and society are struggling mightily with both.
Speaking of Science
Ten-Minute Sabbatical
Take a break from the bench to puzzle and peruse.
Freeze Frame
Caught on Camera
Selected Images of the Day from the-scientist.com
Notebook
What Bat Quarrels Tell Us About Vocal Learning
New research shows humans aren’t that different from our winged cousins.
Sex Differences in Opioid Analgesia: A Complicated Picture
Researchers are beginning to tease apart the mechanisms underlying differences in how males and females respond to powerful painkillers.
Researchers Team Up with Patients to Build a Breast Cancer Database
Combining genomic, clinical, and patient-reported data, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Project provides a unique resource for the cancer community.
Mothers Are Hard-Wired to Respond Similarly to Infant Cries Across Cultures
Researchers find consistent behaviors and brain activity in an international study.
Online First
Child Receives Transgenic Skin
A combination gene-and-cell therapy has given a boy with a grievous skin disease a new lease on life, and resolved a dermatology debate to boot.
Modus Operandi
3-D–Printed Ethoscopes Lower Barriers to Large-Scale Fly Behavior Studies
The DIY devices collect data and enable light stimulation, chamber agitation, and gas infusion.
The Literature
Distinct Regions Drive Responses to Anxiety, Fear
Researchers map brain activity associated with a person’s anticipation of or direct confrontation with danger.
Skin “Remembers” Wounds, Heals Faster the Second Time Around
After an initial wounding, genes needed for repair remain ready for action.
Linoleic Acid Derivatives Potentially Mediate Pain and Itch in the Skin
Researchers uncover a family of compounds that may be involved in pain transmission.
Profiles
David Julius Probes the Molecular Mechanics of Pain
For nearly 30 years, the UC San Francisco researcher has delved into unexplored corners of the nervous system.
Scientist to Watch
Annina Schmid Dissects Nerve Disorders
A background in physiotherapy helps the Oxford-based researcher mix basic science with clinical work to better understand pain stemming from nerve compression.
Lab Tools
High-Throughput Epigenetics Analyses
Emerging technologies help researchers draw mechanistic links between metabolism and epigenetic modification of DNA.
Bio Business
The Quest for Safer Opioid Drugs
From basic research in academic labs to Phase 3 clinical trials, myriad efforts are underway to divorce opioids' pain-relieving potential from their undesirable downsides.
Reading Frames
Why Swearing and Pain Go Hand in Hand
Screaming obscenities when you stub your toe makes perfect biological sense.
Book Excerpt from Swearing is Good for You
In chapter 1, “The Bad Language Brain: Neuroscience and Swearing,” author Emma Byrne sets the scene for her book by telling the story of the hapless and potty-mouthed Phineas Gage.
Foundations
Fake News: Mars Edition, circa 1877
Giovanni Schiaparelli’s maps of Mars sparked the belief that intelligent life exists on the planet.
