MNPARC, with the support of the Medical Discovery Team on Addiction (MDTA) and the Departments of Pharmacology and Anesthesiology, is proud to host exciting seminar speakers on the cutting edge of pain and substance use disorder research.
All seminars are in-person unless otherwise stated. Come join an enthusiastic group of scientists and students at our next seminar!
2026 Seminars
We have 2 speakers lined up for Fall 2026, please stay tuned for more details.
2025 Seminars
December 18, 2025
"From Bar to Backbone: The Surprising Influence of Alcohol on Disc Health"
Dr. Svenja Illien-Junger
NHH 2-101, 12-1 pm
Dr. Svenja Illien-Junger is an Assistant Professor at the Emory University School of Medicine, specializing in intervertebral disc biology. Their research focuses on how lifestyle factors influence disc health and repair, as well as the molecular pathways that regulate disc cellularity in aging and injury-related degeneration. Originally from Germany, Dr. Illien-Junger received their PhD from the AO Research Institute in Davos, Switzerland. Prior to joining Emory, they conducted postdoctoral research and later served as Assistant Professor at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine.
October 29, 2025
"Genetic Architecture of the Comorbidity of Alcohol Use Disorder and Chronic Pain"
Dr. Ellen Yeung
HSEC 4103, 1-2 pm
Dr. Yeung is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences at George Washington University. The goal of Dr. Yeung's research program is to understand the unique and shared risk and resilience factors underlying addiction and chronic pain, and the mechanisms linking the two. In particular, using a lifespan developmental perspective, her work aims to examine the influences of genetics, social environment, and their interplay on: 1) the pathologies of addiction and pain, independently 2) sensitivity to pain among individuals with addiction; 3) susceptibility to addiction among patients with chronic pain; and 4) the biopsychosocial pathways that may account, at least in part, for the reciprocal relation between addiction and chronic pain. In addition, Dr. Yeung is enthusiastic to extend her research to understanding the role of addiction-pain comorbidity among people living with HIV/AIDS.
link to flyer
October 3, 2025
“Therapeutic potential of delta opioid receptors for headache disorders”
Dr. Amynah Pradhan
NHH 2-101, 10-11 am
Amynah Pradhan, PhD, is the director for the Center for Clinical Pharmacology. A major focus of Dr. Pradhan’s research is to understand the role of opioid receptors in trigeminovascular and peripheral pain states. She led the first group to develop a novel preclinical model of chronic migraine pain, and this model is now being used as a screening tool in both academic and industry labs. Dr. Pradhan also identified the delta opioid receptor as a novel therapeutic target for headache disorders. This work has led to the development of a novel delta agonist for migraine, which is entering Phase II clinical trial. Ongoing studies in her lab are centered on how delta opioid receptors regulate headache disorders and associated symptoms. Dr. Pradhan’s group is also studying overlapping mechanisms between chronic migraine and opioid induced hyperalgesia (OIH), and she has used transcriptomic and peptidomic approaches to identify links between these disorders. Additionally, Dr. Pradhan’s is interested in identifying the molecular mechanisms that contribute to migraine chronicity, including analysis of neuronal complexity and cytoskeletal dynamics. The Pradhan lab also has an ongoing interest in the in vivo consequences of ligand bias at the delta opioid receptor, with an aim to develop therapeutics with fewer adverse effects. Dr. Pradhan is interested in translating in vitro findings to animal behavioral models, with the ultimate goal of translating those results to clinical applications, particularly for the treatment of neuropsychiatric conditions.
August 18, 2025
"Mapping the Hidden Brain: How Neuroimaging and Epigenetics Illuminate Chronic Pain"
Dr. Pascal Tétreault
NHH 4-101, 4-5 pm
With over 15 years of research experience in the field of pain, Professor Pascal Tétreault, from the Departments of Anesthesiology and Medical Imaging at the University of Sherbrooke, has developed comprehensive expertise in the mechanisms and treatment of chronic pain. His multidisciplinary background spans molecular biology, animal models, and clinical research. During his postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Vania Apkarian’s group, he explored how brain functional connectivity can be used to predict and classify treatment responses in chronic pain cohorts. Since founding his lab in 2020, his work has increasingly focused on the cerebral correlates of chronic pain, with an emphasis on the stability and longitudinal patterns of brain reorganization, including underexplored features such as white matter microstructure and cerebral blood vessels. His team integrates neuroimaging, genetics, and behavioral science to uncover biomarkers and mechanisms that could improve both diagnosis and treatment strategies. In this talk, Prof. Tétreault will present an overview of his lab’s recent findings on the persistence and variability of brain abnormalities in chronic pain, using multimodal MRI approaches including structural, functional, and angiographic techniques. He will also present results on a collaborative initiative with Professor Laura Stone, examining the links between chronic low back pain and epigenetic signature.
May 20, 2025
“Correlates of prescribed opioid use in the daily lives of patients with chronic non-cancer pain"
Dr. Ryan Carpenter
Zoom seminar, 3-4 pm
Dr. Ryan Carpenter is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Carpenter's research focuses on substance use and how substance use disorder manifests in the natural environment. He uses ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to study substance use and co-use amongst people who both are and are not experiencing use-related problems. Much of his work has focused on alcohol, opioid, and cannabis use and co-use, but he is also interested in the use of other substances. His work also examines the effectiveness and feasibility of mobile health (mHealth) interventions to address and prevent substance use in daily life. A second and related focus of Dr. Carpenter’s research is applying models of negative reinforcement to shed light on the processes through which aversive internal experiences (e.g., negative affect, physical pain) lead some individuals to use substances or engage in self-destructive behaviors, such as non-suicidal self-injury.